Cantabile
by MandaxPanda
Summary: Roxas Alford, a freshman at the Twilight Conservatory of Music, is a collaborative piano major. He must learn to follow any musician. Including Axel Sonheim, whose pompous attitude annoys the hell out of him! Can they learn to make music together? YAOI!
1. Chapter 1

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **Don't own…

I've been really out of it to the point where I needed some fresh air… something different. So I decided I would write a new story… This is definitely one that I'll really enjoy because my life revolves around classical music and being a classical musician.

Chapter 1

So this is it… I'm really standing in front of this building.

I think this is where my real life will begin…

I looked up at the tall building and took it all in.

I am now a freshman in college at the Twilight Conservatory of Music. Hundreds of people from all over the world apply to this school and they only choose thirty applicants… and only five of those are collaborative pianists…

I was really, REALLY lucky. I thought for sure that I wasn't going to get in. I only applied because I figured it would be good experience to accept a loss or two.

Then the audition and interview letter came and I found myself flying to Twilight city.

And when I tell you I was nervous about that… I was terrified…

I was shaking throughout my interview and it took me fifteen minutes to stop stuttering.

The next thing I know… I have an acceptance letter and I'm literally crying on my kitchen floor. My mom thought the dog died or something.

I was definitely not going to pass this up. I'm pretty sure I took out the largest student loan possible to afford this school… I'll probably be paying it for the rest of my life…

But this was worth it. This school had a reputation of molding talented musicians into true artists… artists that make a lot of money doing the craft they love.

That's what I wanted the most… I wanted to live my life playing the piano with another musician at my side.

Because we collaborative pianists make the best partners ever… it's our job.

I was about to take a step forward towards the building when someone knocked me over.

My music fell out of my bag and started to blow away in the wind.

I got up quickly and started to snatch as many papers before they blew away into the street.

"H-hey! Aren't you going to hel-" I paused.

They guy was already in the building.

"I'll remember you red head… I'm definitely not going to like you!" I grumbled under my breath and I grabbed at my papers.

I looked through what I had and I frowned. I was missing the last pages of my favorite piece…

I looked around to see if I could find the last couple of papers and pouted when not a glimpse of white paper could be found.

"Excuse me… did you drop this?" A voice said from behind me.

I turned to see a brunette handing me the two papers I was looking for.

I smiled. "Thank you so much… this is my favorite piece and I was really upset that I couldn't find the last pages of it."

"Well I'm glad I picked them up. I'm Olette, junior clarinetist." She said with a smile

"I'm Roxas, freshman collaborative pianist." I replied.

"That's great! I'm so glad they finally decided to accept more collab. pianists. Last year people were literally fighting over them. And let me tell you, the strings _always _win. I wanted to have my semester recital with Riku and Naminé took him because she plays violin! I was so mad. But enough of that! I assume you know where everything is?" Olette asked.

"I'm not really sure where my dorm room is… I know where the building is, just not the actual room." I said.

"Good! I get to do my duties as an upperclassman. What room?" she asked.

"Ummm… 221D?" I said.

"Oh! I know exactly where that is. It's in my hall. I'm 220 B. You know how this works right?" she asked.

"What works?" I asked.

"Well… the rooms are like suites so you share a common room with three other people and a bathroom." I she said.

"I knew that." I said.

"You also know that the size of your room goes up in letters right?" she said.

"Yes… I have the smallest room… but I figured that was just because I'm a freshman." I said.

"That's right!" she smiled. "Yeah sorry, I'm not trying to be mean… it's just that I had to suffer in room D for two years and so it makes me a little happier to know that others will suffer too!" She said with a large, goofy smile.

"So it's that bad…" I asked.

"Yeah, you only have room for you, your instrument, and your bed." She said.

"Sounds brutal…" I winced.

"Well, you're a pianist so you're okay. But I have a friend who's a contrabassist, I feel so bad for him because he literally has to sleep with his bass in his bed because the room is so small." She explained.

"Well… I'm really only going to sleep in there so it doesn't matter." I said.

"That's the spirit!" she clapped her hands.

I smiled and I followed her into the building. I smiled at all of the people moving about, some carrying their instrument cases, others with conducting batons, even some carrying manuscript paper in preparation for their newest composition.

I knew right then.

This is _definitely _where I wanted to be.

We walked up the stairs and Olette turned to me. "Are you ready to go through the practice room hall? I love it because it's like an explosion of music!" she said.

I nodded enthusiastically. Maybe today I would hear my music partner singing or playing in one of the small practice rooms.

We moved down the hall and I stopped for a second just to take in all of the beautiful sounds. I loved this…

And then I heard it…

"_Ta rose de poupre à ton clair soleil, O Juin, étincelle enivrée, Penche ausi vers moi ta coupe dorée: mon coeur à ta rose est pareil…"_

The deep voice was sailing down the hallway in waves… a voice so smooth, but so energized. It had a charisma that drew in the listeners… I could tell...

I wanted that voice. It was so beautiful and enticing! I needed it! I needed it!

I ran down the hallway, letting my ears follow the sound.

"Hey! Roxas? Where are you going?" I ignored Olette as I moved swiftly down the hall.

The voice stopped for a second and I panicked. Where are you? Where are you!

"_La chantante mer, le long du rivage, Taira son mumure eternel…"_

I heard it start up again, louder now. I was close. I ran faster.

_Avant qu'en mon coeur, chère amour, O Nell…"_

I pinpointed the door. I zoomed towards the practice room. The tension was building. I needed to hear the top note. It would be fantastic!

I wrenched the door open. _"Ne flouri- _Whoa! What are you doing?_" _The redhead yelled angrily.

No… no it can't be! Not the jackass that knocked me over and didn't bother to help!

"WHY YOU!" I yelled. Why did this asshole have to be the voice I wanted? Why?

"Excuse me?" the redhead asked incredulously.

"You knocked me over and didn't help! Why you!" I cried out to the ceiling.

"Roxas, what is wrong with you? You just ran off for no reason…" Olette trailed off before blushing.

"Oh my god! Axel I am so sorry! I was showing this freshman to the dorms and he just runs off! I'm so sorry if he disturbed you!" She said and grabbed my arm roughly and pulled me back.

"Olette, don't associate with the freshmen… they're obviously out of their minds, especially this one." He said pointing to me.

My face flushed with anger. "W-well look who's talking! You are so rude! I don't care if you're an upperclassman or whatever! You can't just knock people down and not help them up! My music blew all over the place, I was lucky when Olette found the rest of my music!" I yelled.

I was elbowed in the side and I shut up. I couldn't believe it! Olette saw what happened and she's elbowing me?

"Well, I'm going to take him to his dorm now. Sorry for the intrusion." She said with a small giggle and closed the door. "Roxas what is the matter with you?" she piped.

"What do you mean? What's wrong with you? That guy is an asshole! Why are you being nice to him?" I asked.

"That's Axel Sonheim, only the most promising singer in this entire school! Not only is he here on a full scholarship, he's already been on stage with major names in the opera business, at age 18!" Olette babbled.

"Wait… I'm almost 18 and I'm a freshmen… how does that work?" I asked.

"He came here as a freshman at age 16. He's a singing prodigy!" she said.

"Ok… I won't deny that I thought his voice was probably the most beautiful thing I had ever heard… but that doesn't give him the right to be an ass to me! I'm sorry… but I don't condone rudeness just because someone is talented." I said.

Olette sighed. "Where's your room key?" she asked.

I handed it to her and she opened my room door.

I smiled and looked to the window that overlooked the bustling city.

"I like this." I said.

"Good, because you'll be living here for a long while." Olette said.

I heard a door open and I looked to see a blonde girl walk out of her room. She paused when she saw us.

"Hello!" she said to me. "Olette." She said dully.

"Naminé." Olette replied in the same tone.

You could practically see the tension rise in the room. They must have hated each other.

Wait… Naminé was the name of the violinist that Olette didn't like.

I quietly excused myself and walked into my small room.

There really was only room for your bed…

I placed my bag on the bed and took out my binder of music. I should probably practice for the big day tomorrow.

Part of the curriculum for a collaborative pianist is testing how well he or she can follow a singer or instrumentalist. So on the first day of classes, a collab. pianist is paired with a soloist and are destined to work together for the entire year.

I could see it now… me playing along with a fellow artist… becoming one through the art of making music. I was so excited!

I snuck out of the room without being detected by the building ferocity between the two girls in the room.

I moved down to the hallway and found an empty practice room. I smiled immediately.

A beautiful Steinway piano.

I moved over to it and quickly sat at the seat. I gently placed my finger on middle C.

It was perfectly in tune.

I put my binder on the music stand and turned to the music I wanted to play.

LAUDAMUS TE by MOZART

I smiled and even though I had no singer, I could imagine one because the music really mirrored everything. Mozart was by far my favorite composer. His music was so lively and absolutely, breathtakingly refreshing from the crap I got handed to me in life.

I played the first notes firmly as if to say 'Hey shut up and listen!' Then I played some lively chords to say, 'Here's the soprano, she's fantastic so listen!'

I could hear the soprano sing, me moving in an upward motion behind her, tension building.

She moves in for the run. I let her do her thing and I make sure she doesn't slip. She sits on a note and I provide a contrast of movement. I loved everything about this!

There were some things about classical music that will remain dear in my heart forever. The sheer fluff and carefree ebb and flow, they were so easy to catch on to.

I moved to crescendo. I was ready for the singer again.

"_Laudamus te, laudamus te, benedicimus te, adoramus te, glroificamus te." _

I could hear the singer… I could really hear her…

Only it was deeper… it wasn't a soprano…

I continued to play wondering who was singing. I was moving towards the end.

"_Laudamus te, Laudamus te, benedicimus te, adoramus te, glorificamus te!"_ the voice sang beautifully.

When I finished the last chord I immediately ran to the door and wrenched it open to see who was singing with me.

"Well at least you're good for one thing…" a voice said.

One that I was not happy about.

"You again?" I asked exasperatedly.

"Oi! I'm giving you a complement and you act like this?" Axel said with a raised eyebrow.

"Well if it was a complement I didn't catch on to it because it was buried in sass and rudeness!" I said.

Axel rolled his eyes. "You get Mozart. Sometimes you collaborative pianists just play what's on the page, but you were listening to the singer. That's a good thing." Axel said.

I blushed. "Ummm, thanks."

"Well don't go around thinking you're special just because I said that. You're not that important." He said with a snappy tone.

"Well don't think you're special because I was flattered by your complement. Anyone could have said that and I would have had the same reaction!" I snapped back.

"Axel Sonhiem." He said.

I paused. "Roxas… Roxas Alford."

"French?" he asked.

I nodded.

"German?" I asked.

He nodded. "Are you done with that practice room? It's mine and I'd appreciate it if you would get out." He said.

I scoffed. "NO, I'm not finished and I will not leave and I certainly do not see any sort of proof that this is _your _practice room!" I said.

"Did you check the window of the door?" he asked.

"What?" I asked and looked to the door.

There was an I.D.

Axel's I.D.

"When a student puts their I.D. in the window it means that they are reserving it. Therefore, this is my practice room and I'm kicking you out!" Axel said and pulled me out of the door.

"H-HEY!" I yelped and found myself on the floor. The door of the practice room opened again and Axel threw my binder at me.

"ARRRRGH!" I exclaimed. I was totally fed up with that punk! I would be less mad if he really was an upperclassman but in truth, he was only a few months older than me.

I hated pompous assholes like him. I marched back to my dorm and plopped myself on the bed. I'll just steer clear of that punk. I don't care how popular he is, he's not going to get away with treating me like shit!

I fell asleep hoping that tomorrow would hold a more promising fate.

A/N: So there you have it. A music conservatory romance! Review and tell me what you think!


	2. Chapter 2

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **I really don't own anything except for the plot.

I can't tell you how excited I am to write a story about characters who are musicians. I mean Fire kind of had it but it wasn't predominating over the rest of the plot. Having a story that is all about music and characters that love music is almost like I'm writing a Christmas present to myself. I hope you guys enjoy too. MERRY CHRISTMAS/HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO EVERYBODY! This is my gift to you! Hope you like it!

Chapter 2

I woke up early and pulled some clothes and my toiletries out of my bag. I walked out of my room and into the common room of the suite. I looked to the bathroom and moved towards it.

I knocked on the door. "Is there anyone in here?" I asked.

"Yeah! I'm almost done though. I'll be out in five minutes." A female voice said.

I blushed… it was a little weird to be sharing a bathroom with girls… isn't that a little inappropriate?

"Oh! Hey! You must be a new student." I heard from behind me.

I turned and gasped.

In front of me was a boy who had my face! How did this work? "WHOA!" I yelped.

"DUDE! Are we related?" The boy asked.

"I don't know! My name is Roxas Alford… do you know of my surname?" I asked.

The boy shook his head. "My name is Sora Kunimachi… how can I be Japanese and you be French and we have the same face!" Sora asked incredulously.

"I DON'T KNOW! Let's just say we're cousins." I said.

"Sounds good, cuz!" Sora gave me a thumbs up.

"What do you play?" I asked.

"Classical trumpet and French horn, what about you?" he asked.

"I'm a collaborative pianist." I said.

"Really? So you're going to match ups this morning?" Sora asked.

"Match ups?" I asked.

"When they pair a pianist with another musician." He answered.

"Yeah… I didn't know they called it that." I said. "Are you going?" I asked.

"No, I have a lesson first thing. They usually just pick a few soloists to go to match ups and they can figure who should go with who. But there still are too many other students that need collab. pianists. So we still end up fighting over them. But by the end of the year, you've really learned how to connect with another artist and stuff. Last year, I had a really awesome pianist who understood that French horn transposes up a fifth. Riku seemed to really understand the characters of every instrument. I had so many people fight with me for him. But he was assigned to me so I was his top priority. It was great!" Sora said with a slight blush.

"But aren't you getting a new pianist now?" I asked.

"Yeah, but I'm okay with that. I see Riku all the time because he's my boyfriend." Sora said unabashedly.

My eyes widened. "I've never had someone come out to me so casually…" I trailed.

"Oh… you better get used to that. About half of the male musicians here are gay." Sora said.

I smiled. "I don't mind... I'm rather inclined to the male gender myself..." I trailed off scratching my head.

"TEE HEE! That's the right attitude!" Sora said.

When I heard the bathroom door open I turned. Naminé walked out of the bathroom looking like she came from a salon. Her hair was in large curls and her dress was as white as snow. Her fingers and toes were pale pink and her make up made here eyes shine.

"You look pretty." I said without thinking.

She smiled. "Thanks."

I walked into the bathroom and hung my towel on the rack. I hopped into the shower, bathed myself, got out and dried off, towel dried my hair, put on my clothes, and brushed my teeth. I left the bathroom feeling refreshed.

"Well I'll see you later cousin!" Sora said and I waved goodbye before leaving.

So this Match Ups thing was in the next building. I went downstairs and went to the café to buy a chai latte. I drank it on the way to class. When I got inside the main building, I threw away my empty cup and followed the crowd of students who seemed to be going to the same place I was.

We all sat in the auditorium and after a couple of minutes two teachers came out with smiles on their faces.

"Alright everyone! Quiet down, I know you kids are excited but we need your attention." A brunette woman said.

We all quieted and she looked to the male teacher next to her.

"Well, I am Mr. Fair and this is Ms. Gainsborough and we are basically the heads of this operation. I'm the head of piano and instrumental studies and she is head of vocal studies. Today we are going to pair the pianists with other musicians as a long term test to see if the pianists can both follow and contribute to the performance of the solo and/or ensemble. I realize that some of you are piano performance majors and not collab. pianists, but you are also incorporated in this program because it teaches valuable knowledge that every musician should know. Being able to work well with other musicians is the most important thing in the music business." Mr. Fair said.

"We also hope that this will bring our students together and welcome the incoming freshmen and transfers into the T-Con family. So we want all of you to turn to the students next to you and shake their hands. Introduce yourself and the instrument you play." Ms. Gainsborough said.

I turned to shake the hand of a slightly chubby kid and I smiled. "Hi, I'm Roxas. I'm a collaborative pianist. I hope we can get along during our stay here."

The kid smiled. "I'm Pence! It's nice to meet you. I'm a sophomore and I play bassoon." He said.

I smiled and said, "Awesome," before turning to the other person next to me and smiling. "I'm Roxas, I'm a freshman collaborative pianist. It's nice to meet you!" I said.

The guy paused and blinked for a few seconds.

"Yeah, sorry about that. You caught me off guard for a second. It's great to have another collab. pianist in the gang! I'm Riku senior collaborative pianist here at T-Con." Riku said.

I smiled. "I was only here for a day and I've heard a lot about you. I hope I can learn form your experience." I said.

"Well it's good to know that I'm well liked around here." Riku said.

"I met Sora this morning. He's in my dorm. We have the same face." I said.

"Yeah I noticed! I mean, it's ridiculous how alike your faces are. If you were to dye your hair brown I would have thought that you were my boyfriend and had just gotten a haircut without telling me." Riku said.

"We surprised each other this morning. We just decided to assume that we were cousins even though he's Japanese and I'm French." I said.

"Sounds like a good idea." Riku said with a chuckle.

"Now that everyone's acquainted, I think it's time for some experimentation!" Mr. Fair said and people cheered.

"I think one of the freshmen should be our guinea pig, don't you think Zack?" Ms. Gainsborough asked.

"Oh yeah! I think Selphie should be our soloist but now we need a good sight-reading freshman. Which one of you freshman feel comfortable with their sight-reading?" Mr. Fair asked.

I raised my hand and looked around thinking that there would be at least three other freshmen raising their hands.

I was alone and I blushed in embarrassment.

"No! That's a good thing Roxas! Get your butt up there!" Riku said and took my wrist and lifted me up.

"W-wait!" I stuttered.

"This guy was raising his hand, Mr. Fair." Riku said.

People looked back at me and I smiled nervously. "I c-can do it." I stuttered.

"Well it's good to know that someone's ready for the conservatory experience. There's no shyness in the performing arts!" Mr. Fair said and I walked up to the front.

A brunette came up to me and took my hand. "I'm Selphie. I'm a junior cellist. I want to play a tango called Oblivion by Piazzolla. Do you think you can do it?" she asked handing me the sheet music.

I looked though it. It was slow and I could tell it was beautiful just by the shapes the notes made on the page.

The middle section was the most beautiful. "I'll definitely play this! It looks gorgeous. I'll start out slow and just pick up the tempo if it's lagging. I'll follow you." I said.

"Do you need some more time to look it over?" Ms. Gainsborough asked.

I shook my head. "This is definitely doable. I'm so glad I decided to go first. Piazzolla huh? I'm going to listen to his music later." I said.

"I like this kid!" Selphie said with a smile.

"We do too. Alright guys! Just by Roxas' attitude you can tell he's going to be promising. I want you guys to watch closely, we're all going to critique each other." Mr. Fair and Ms. Gainsborough said together.

I smiled. "You ready Selphie?" I asked.

"Yes. Please." She said and we walked up onto the stage.

I smiled. I didn't notice the beautiful Bösendorfer piano on the stage until now. I walked over to it and almost drooled over it. It was shiny and it had extensions for even deeper tones.

"We definitely appreciated it too when we first got it. This is one of the newer pianos that were donated to us. It's beautiful right?" Mr. Fair asked.

I nodded and sat at the large instrument. "I can't wait!" I squealed.

"Well then don't, silly! I need to tune." Selphie said.

I nodded and gave her a D minor chord and listened as she tuned. I loved the sound. Cello had so much depth but avoided being sultry or vulgar. It was a great instrument for solo.

She looked at me and I smiled.

I started the music slowly, tenderly. It was a tango so it needed to be sentimental but a little suggestive.

She eased into the music and I picked up her flow. She wanted me to move a little on the longer notes and slow for the passing ones. It was like she wanted every note to be articulated. I understood. She wanted me to seize the moments. I could see the dancers holding tightly to each other. Never wanting to let go because they were locked into a blissful oblivion.

Oblivion, how appropriate.

The middle part was coming. It was passionate, almost sexy if you thought about it. And I think Selphie knew that, because she picked up the speed but played with urgency and with tender loving excitement that I locked onto.

I leaned into the piano and played with firmness. I held onto her as she moved above me.

We switched positions and I allowed myself to be taken away by the music. I closed my eyes and adlibbed a little. I moved above her and trickled back down into the last section.

Softly, slower now. The music knew, the musicians knew that we were coming to an end. And though we didn't want to, we allowed ourselves to let go. She played her last note and I my last chord. We let it ring before the bow finally left the strings and my hands left the piano.

I let out a sigh and looked to Selphie. She turned to me with a flush on her face. "That was hot." She said.

I smiled. "It was a pleasure playing with you." I took her hand and shook it.

The audience cheered and we blushed.

"That was definitely not expected. Thank so much for that wonderful performance. I think we're going to have fun placing you with someone." Mr. Fair said and Ms. Gainsborough nodded.

I bowed a little in thanks before moving back to my seat. People grabbed my hand and patted my shoulder and said. "Great job!" I blushed and smiled before thanking them.

I sat down and I suddenly felt my head in a headlock. "You little punk! You act all shy, but you know what you're doing! I'm so glad we have such a promising new student in our group!" Riku said and gave me a nuggie.

I smiled. "I'm not that spectacular… I just really liked the piece." I said.

"We could tell. To be honest you looked like you were making love to the piano." Riku said.

I flushed brightly. "That's so embarrassing!" I said.

"It's good. We need to have more passionate collaborative pianists anyway." Riku said.

I covered my face and took a breath.

"Next should be… Hayner, come play the piccolo for us." Ms. Gainsborough said.

Hayner stood and there were a lot of wolf whistles and cheers.

"SHUT UP! IT TAKES A REAL MAN TO PLAY PICCOLO!" He yelled with a blush on his face.

"What ever helps you sleep at night!" someone yelled.

"Seifer! You're a percussionist! You play the triangle!" was Hayner's retort.

The students laughed.

"Seifer! I know for a fact that you are supposed to be in theory right now! Get out and go to class! Don't forget that I have the power to boot you out of orchestra!" Mr. Fair yelled.

"I'm going, I'm going…" Seifer stood and moved out of the room.

I smiled at the group. It seemed like everyone knew each other and were friends more or less. It made me happy.

A girl stood and walked up to the stage.

"Well hello Rinoa, are going to play for us now?" Ms. Gainsborough asked.

She nodded and turned to Hayner. "What are you playing?" she asked.

"Here." He said and handed her some music. She looked through it and smiled. "Are you ready?"

He nodded and put his instrument to his mouth.

I smiled. It was a really nice piece. It was sweet but it had a couple of moments that seemed a little more… well they seemed to have some underlying emotions. Rinoa seemed to be having fun. She got to pound on the piano in some moments and there was a fun contrast of soft and loud. When the song was over I clapped and cheered with everyone.

"Alright Axel! I know you want to sing! Riku you too!" Ms. Gainsborough said with a laugh.

"Yes! I love Match up day!" Axel stood from next to Riku.

I didn't even realize he was there this whole time. I watched them move down and onto the stage. I watched carefully and crossed my arms.

"Hi everyone! You guys should know after a day here that I'm Axel Sonheim and this is my good friend Riku. I will be singing Samuel Barber's The Daisies. It's one of my favorites because it really epitomizes the characteristics of a daisy. And it's really sweet and sometimes it's a nice break from all of the other things I've been singing. I hope you enjoy." He said.

Riku softly began to play the music.

Axel opened him mouth to sing. _"In the scented bud of the morning o, when the windy grass went rippling far, I saw my dear one walking slow, in the fields where the daisies are."_

I hated it… I hated the fact that someone who is so rude could be this talented. Everything about his voice, his delicate handling of the vocal piece, the whole interpretation was fantastic.

A song about a love as tender and sweet as a little daisy. It was so beautiful.

"_A lark sang up from the breezy land, a lark sang down from a cloud afar, as she and I went hand and hand in the fields where the daisies are."_

I couldn't help but say, "Awwwwwwwww," With the rest of the audience. It really was adorably sweet.

"He sure is good huh?" Pence said and I immediately shut up.

"No…" I said quietly and crossed my arms again.

The audience continued to applaud and Axel bowed.

"LET ME HAVE YOUR BABIES AXEL!" A girl screamed from the front.

Axel smiled and blew a kiss to the girls to the front of the crowd.

"AHHHH! We love you Axel!" some girls yelled from behind me.

I turned to look at them, absolutely appalled.

"Thanks! Everyone! I _am_ taking numbers down so if you want me to call you up, I'll be waiting at the door when this is over!" he said.

My jaw hit the floor.

"OKAY! Axel, get off the stage! I forget that you're only good for one thing and that's signing, once that's over you turn into a trouble maker!" Mr. Fair said.

"Mr. Fair I can take your number too if you want!" he said before blowing him a kiss.

"Axel! You're lucky I'm in a good mood. Sit down or I will make you grade theory tests all day!" Mr. Fair yelled.

Axel winced and hurried off the stage.

Riku passed me and I smiled. "That was really amazing. You're really good at following and matching the singers needs." I said.

"Well you're not too bad yourself Roxas." He said with a smile and sat.

"Do I get a complement, sweetheart?" Axel said as he passed me.

I scowled. "Nice job." I said dryly.

"Awe, there's no need to be bitter, hun. There's enough of me to share." Axel said and took my chin.

I slapped his hand away. "Don't touch me." I said.

"You know you think I'm fabulous." He said with a smug look.

"No. I think you're an asshole and that you need to get out of my face!" I growled.

"God I feel sorry for the person that get's matched up with you! Mr. Fair, you should send this one back. It's definitely rotten!" Axel yelled to the professor.

I stood and walked out of the isle. I was not going to get kicked out of this school for kicking his ass. "The one who's rotten here is you Axel Sonheim. And I think you definitely need a reality check if you think everything is going to go your way just because you are some sort of singing prodigy! I don't give a shit if you can beautifully sing a high A flat, you could sing an F in the stratosphere for all I care but I will not acknowledge you as a musician until you start acting like one!" I yelled and turned to Ms. Gainsborough. "I would really like to go to a practice room. May I please leave?" I asked.

Mr. Fair spoke up. "You know… I think I like this development. Consider yourselves matched. They make a nice pair don't they." Mr. Fair turned to Ms. Gainsborough.

"Oh yes, I think they will work well together." She said.

"WHAT?" Basically everyone in the entire auditorium said together.

"Mr. Fair! You saw me with Riku! We're like peanut butter and jelly! How can you split us up?" Axel exclaimed.

"Well, unfortunately for you, I don't like peanut butter and jelly. I prefer peanut butter and honey and that is what Roxas is, honey." Mr. Fair explained.

"Please reconsider!" I yelled and the audience agreed.

"I certainly don't remember letting students have a say in match ups. Do you, Ms. Gainsborough?" he asked.

Ms. Gainsborough shook her head. "I can't remember either. It's been decided and there is nothing you can do about it. I think you should go into a practice room and settle your differences." She said.

"That sounds like a great idea!" Mr. Fair said.

"Fine!" Axel yelled and grabbed my wrist tightly.

"Ow! Let go! You stupid jerk! I am capable of walking to a practice room."

"Shut up!" he yelled and threw me into a practice room.

The door closed and we looked at each other.

"Okay…" Axel started.

"Okay…" I said and the discussion began.

A/N: CHAPTER 2 REVIEW NOW! If I get ten I'll update again! (This is me being cocky, I don't even think I have that many readers reading this story right now but it's either GO BIG or GO HOME ... so let's see what happens!) And it's also Christmas so I doubt people will be reading this... I will be eating, lots of food... so yeah, maybe tomorrow it depends. I'm gonna stop rambling now.


	3. Chapter 3

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **I got nothing… except the plot!

Chapter 3

"So let me tell you something, I'm like, the head honcho of this school! You're not allowed to yell at me and embarrass me in front of all the students! IT'S RUDE!" Axel yelled.

"Did you really just call me rude? That's the pot calling the kettle black! You are the rudest person I've ever met in my entire life! And another thing! Just because you are the so-called 'head honcho' of this school, it certainly does not give you the right to treat me like shit!" I yelled. I really couldn't believe this guy! Accusing _me _of being rude?

"First of all when did I treat you like shit! If anything, I treated you better than everyone else! And yet you still yell at me and call me out as if I'm a bad person! You embarrassed me in front of everyone! You're lucky I'm good at shaking things off!" Axel yelled again.

"Come on Axel! Are you like in the third grade? Embarrassing you? I didn't come here to fucking cater to your needs! I'm not your fucking mother! You're acting like a child! I would be less bothered by this if you were actually older than me, but you're really only older than me by a few months!" I snapped.

"You are so annoying! What the hell are you talking about? My mother's got nothing to do with this! Stop acting so high and mighty anyway!" Axel retorted.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME! Again with the hypocrisy! You're the one acting all high and mighty! You act like you're the greatest person on the planet, then you parade around arrogantly expecting people to bend to your every will! I'm not beneath you! Don't look down on me and don't look down on others!" I yelled.

"When the fuck did I look down on you? I didn't look down on anyone!" Axel growled.

"Okay you said… 'Well at least your good for one thing' after I came out of the practice room yesterday! You didn't even know me for an hour and you acted like I was useless except for playing that piece! Try and tell me that's not you looking down on me!" I replied.

"What! That was a complement!" Axel snapped.

"No it wasn't! It was an insult!" I said.

"And what about you? You say that I was mean after not knowing you for an hour! You've judged my ENTIRE character without even spending fifteen minutes with me! You go on saying that I'm arrogant and that I look down on people and that I'm an asshole! DUDE! You don't know me! So why don't YOU step down off of your fucking high horse and actually listen to what I'm saying!" Axel yelled.

"Alright then… I'll humor you… I'm listening." I said.

"Everything that comes out of my mouth you automatically morph into an insult! You're trying to make me sound like an asshole but I'm not! I'm not cruel or mean to anyone! You can ask every person in this school! A couple of them may not like me, but I've never actually been cruel to anyone!" Axel yelled.

"You're lying to my face! You said, 'Olette, don't associate with the freshmen… they're obviously out of their minds, especially this one.' And 'God I feel sorry for the person that get's matched up with you! Mr. Fair, you should send this one back. It's definitely rotten!' THAT IS DEFINITELY CRUEL!" I yelled.

"ALL OF THAT WAS PROVOKED BY YOU! You barge into my practice room while I'm singing and start screaming, 'Why you?' as if it's a tragedy that I'm the one in the room! Then during match ups you call me an asshole in front of everyone!" Axel yelled again.

If I wasn't so absorbed in this fight right now, I would have taken the time to thank whoever it was who created sound-proof rooms. To those passing us, they could not hear a single word we said but could notice the angry faces and the wild waving of arms. The students would take a second to peek through the window before returning to go about their business.

I really thought about what he said and the truth was…

Well it was just that… it was the truth.

I had judged him after he pushed me down and refused to change my mind about his character after watching his boisterous actions during match ups.

I sighed and rubbed my temples but jumped when a loud hooting noise came from the other side of the practice room.

I tuned to Axel and gave him a funny look.

"Well, I'm sorry if I interrupted your thoughts. But unlike you, I have a voice I need to check on periodically after screaming because I could hurt myself." He said before hooting some more.

"What does the hooting do?" I asked.

"Well… it's not really a hoot. If you listen carefully, my voice goes from a high pitch to a low pitch. What I'm doing is going through my entire range from top to bottom without singing. The reason it sounds kind of like a hoot is because I'm engaging my diaphragm to simulate singing. If my voice cracks at any point in that vocal sigh, that's what it's called, that means that my voice needs to rest. Luckily, there wasn't any cracking and I can sing tomorrow." Axel said.

"Oh…" I said. "Look… I'm sorry. I won't treat you badly if you can promise to be nicer to me."

"Apology accepted." Axel said and opened the practice room door.

"Well aren't you going to apologize?" I asked.

"No! I didn't do anything wrong!" Axel said before walking out of the practice room.

Are you… shitting me? What the fuck did we just have this entire argument for if you are still going to act like a dick?

I sighed and grabbed my things. I needed to go to Music Theory and then after that I'd have a couple of hours until piano studies and ear training.

I walked out of the practice room and made my way up the stairs and down the hall to the Theory classroom.

I sat at a front desk and took out a notebook and pencil. This was actually an advanced Theory class because I had tested out of the first class. I was really proud of that, but I knew it was going to be really hard.

When the teacher walked in he scowled at all of us.

"My name is Sephiroth… you will refer to me as Mr. S, nothing else." He said in a dry tone.

"Today we will be dissecting a Haydn mass. I advise that you take notes and keep up. I have provided the copies of the scores. They were paid for in your student fees. So if you're wondering why this school is so expensive, it's because you are paying for state of the art equipment and top-notch reference tools and scores. Some of which, are now out of print." He said. "Please form a single file line at my desk so that I may administer the scores."

I stood and walked over to the desk quietly.

"Name." Mr. S asked.

"Roxas, Roxas Alford."

He highlighted my name in his roll book before handing me a shining copy of the Haydn 'Paukenmesse.'

I moved back to my seat and opened the score. I smiled.

I love classical music. And because it was Haydn, a lot of the little things in the score were very Mozartian sounding.

I continued to look through the score. I liked the small little things about the mass. Though it sounded, in many parts, light and free… it was really a mass for war. It was only till you got to later parts of the mass that you would really get a sense of military-like austerity.

"Alright, open your masses to the Kyrie section. Look through it for two minutes and tell me some things that you noted." Mr. S said and I looked around.

Lots of melismatic line, it's in C major… ummmmm…

It changes… from C to G major… one to five… that's evidence to sonata form.

I checked the end. All in the tonic key of C major. I smiled, definitely sonata form.

"Alright… someone." Mr. S said.

I raised my hand.

"Yes Mr. Alford."

"The Kyrie section of this mass is in sonata form." I said.

"And what exactly is sonata form?" he asked.

"Sonata form consists of an exposition, a developmental section, and a recapitulation. The exposition starts in the tonic key but by the end modulates to the dominant key, which in this case, is G major. The development allows for more modulations, sometimes turning to the relative minor or another relative key. The recapitulation, restates the previous music only completely in tonic. Haydn has added a coda to reintroduce a motif and possibly to allow more emphasis on the soloist. I mean… it was the classical period right? So this really wouldn't be a mass in church… it's more for entertainment purposes. It's more commercial." I ranted almost losing myself in my thoughts.

I shook my head. "I apologize, I got sidetracked."

Mr. S spoke. "Roxas here has noted some rather intuitive points about the mass and has provided a good start. Thank you." He looked to me and nodded.

I blushed before nodding back.

"Anyone else want to add something?" Mr. S asked.

"I noticed a really nice use of secondary dominants in sequence." Another student said from the back.

"Yes, what do you think is the purpose of those chords?" Mr. S asked.

"Well they provide rising tension and they are an interesting way to modulate in the development." The student said.

Mr. S nodded. "That is true, Kairi. Can anyone else provide more insight in this section?"

Class went on like that for another hour. By the time we were finished with the Kyrie section, my score and notebook were covered in notes and markings.

But even though it was a lot of fast pace, hard work, when we listened to the Kyrie section…

I think we could all appreciate the crafting of the piece much more and have an overall respect for the composer who wrote it.

Mr. S came around the room and passed out a yellow book. I looked at the cover.

25 Italian Art Songs and Arias from the 17th and 18th centuries was the title.

"Luckily, there are 25 of you in this class so I will assign you an art song that you must analyze for next class. Once you get your assignment, you may leave."

"Roxas Alford… you're first on my role book… If you look, the penultimate piece in this book is called, Pietà Signore. I want you to analyze this piece." Mr. S said.

"Just analyze the whole thing for next class?" I asked.

Mr. S nodded and I packed my things. I left the room and walked down the stairs. I let out a sigh and moved to the exit.

I was exhausted and I needed a nap.

When I got to my dorm, I sighed and plopped myself on the sofa. I covered my face with my arm. "Shit…" I said under my breath.

"It must be your first day here." A voice said from behind me. I turned to see who it was.

He was a tall brunette holding a guitar case.

"Hi…" I said.

"Call me Leon… I'm a senior classical guitarist. I sleep in room A." he said.

I nodded. "Roxas. Freshman, collab. pianist… and yes, it is my first day of classes and I'm exhausted."

Leon sat in a chair and pulled his guitar from his case. "You don't mind if I play do you?" he asked.

I shook my head. "Please… I need a distraction anyway."

Leon played softly and I relaxed to the resonating sound of the guitar. After a few seconds I looked to him.

"That sounds really familiar… is it Monteverdi?" I asked.

"Yeah… the renaissance lute player graduated last year so they appointed the closest thing available, guitar. So I have to learn this entire opera by the end of the semester… the early music students always give me a hard time." Leon grumbled.

"The early music students are doing a production at the end of the semester?" I asked.

"Yeah, an opera. L'Incoronazione di Poppea… it's beautiful, but a bitch to learn if you're a guitarist trying to imitate a lute…" Leon ran a hand through his hair.

"I think the early music students will really appreciate your hard work. I do and I just met you." I said with a small smile.

"Well… thank you." He said and continued to play.

"Hey Leon?" I started.

He hummed.

"Do you know a guy named Axel Sonheim?" I asked.

"Yes… I don't talk to him or anything… I don't really like him all that much." He said.

"So I'm not alone… I don't like him either." I said.

"I just think the guy has enough attention outside of school… he doesn't need any more fan clubs here. And it's just wrong to act the way he does sometimes. I mean… he sings opera… classical music. If he really wanted the attention he gets, he should have auditioned for American Idol. It's demeaning to me." Leon said before returning to his playing.

"He just bothers me… he says that I'm judging him… and I might be… but he's judging me too." I said.

Leon continued to play.

"And he has such a sassy attitude! It's annoying! I can't believe they matched me up with him! He's so arrogant! He grabs my chin and calls me sweetheart! I was so mad when he did that! I'm not a frikkin girl! Don't get me wrong… he has one of the most beautiful voices I have ever heard but I can't help but feel that it's spoiled by his terrible personality. It's really a shame. And then there's those girls that act like he's some pop idol or something! You don't scream during the applause after a classical performance! It's rude and uncouth! And Axel was just egging them on! Asking for numbers? Are you kidding me? Can you get any less mature! And what's with that flaming red hair… do they let him on stage with that in an operatic setting? Is it even real? I wouldn't be surprised if it was fake… I can't believe I was matched with him! Why couldn't I have been matched with a nicer person… a more respectable person? It's bothersome!"

"You know… for someone who doesn't like the guy… you sure are talking about him a lot. I mean… that rant was like twenty minutes long." Leon said looking at his watch on his wrist.

I blushed. "I j-just had a lot of stuff to get off my chest!"

Leon nodded and put his guitar away. "I have a lesson. Nice meeting you." He said.

I nodded. "Thanks for listening."

"Hi Leon!" Sora's voice said and I sat up to see Sora enter the room.

"What's up cuz?" he asked.

"Not much… I got matched up with Axel Sonheim." I said.

"Really? That's awesome! He's Riku's best friend so I hang with him all the time. He's a joker but he's always there when you need him." Sora said with a smile.

"I'll take your word for it." I said before stretching and pulling the yellow book out of my bag. I might as well get a head start on this theory homework.

"I'm going to head to a practice room. I'll see you later." I said with a small smile and left the room.

It took me a few minutes to find an empty practice room but when I did I walked inside and sat at the piano.

I opened the book to the table of contents and turned to the song.

Pietà, Signore… I'm pretty sure that means Have Mercy, God… it's in D minor. I smiled at that.

D minor was one of my favorite keys to play in. I looked through it before playing anything.

It was basically a Da Capo aria… there was a A section and a B section and after singing the B section, you return to the A section.

I turned to the beginning of the piece and began to play. It had a really nice intro, which made me happy. Long intros always help the collaborative pianist get a feel of the music, especially when sight-reading.

The beginning allowed the singer to sing alone without the piano, then the piano would play alone, then the singer.

"Pietà Signore…" I sang softly. "di me dolente, Signor pietà…"

Then it picks up a little and the pianist and the singer play and sing together.

"_Se a te giunge il mio pregar; Non mi punisca il tuo rigor, Meno severi, clementi ongora, Volgi i tuoi sguardi sopra di me, sopra di me. _I love this song!" A voice said.

I jumped to feet in the air when I realized someone was behind me. "W-when did _you _get in here?" I spluttered.

"About twenty seconds into your playing. Why are you playing this? I didn't ask you to learn it…" Axel said.

"It's for theory." I said dryly. "I have to analyze it."

"Well, we should go through it. Go on! Again! From the top!" Axel said and turned me back to the piano.

I grumbled a little before starting the song again.

"_Pietà Signore, di me dolente! Signor pietà, se a te giunge il mio pregar; Non mi punisca il tuo rigor, Meno severi, clementi ongora, Volgi i tuoi sguardi sopra di me, sopra di me!" _Axel sang.

The song started to rise in tension.

"_Non fia mai che nell'inferno Sia dannato nel fuoco eterno dal tuo rigor."_

I really liked this song… the rising semi-tones, the dynamics, the intensity... I found myself sinking into the music.

"_Gran dio." _He was crying for mercy. _"giammai sia dannato nel fuoco eterno dal tuo rigor. Dal tuo rigor!" _Axel sang with firmness.

I smiled and we moved to the middle section.

"_Pietà Signore, Signor pietà di me dolente, se a te giunge il mio pregare, il mio pregar, meno severi,"_

I quieted when I hear Axel's voice quiet as if weakened with fear. Fear from the wrath of God.

"_clementi ognora, volgi i sguardi," _

It was picking up again and Axel knew it too. We crescendoed together.

"_Deh! Volgi i sguardi sume, signor…"_ we crescendoed again.

"_Sume signor…" _

It was time to go back to the A section so I looked to him.

He started singing again and I followed. This time with more intensity. I started to understand his interpretation and anticipate his moves.

There was more crying, more sighing, more sobbing for mercy.

When we reached the penultimate line I knew he would trill so I waited as he sang.

He looked to me and smiled as he trilled the note.

Then we finished together, his bottom note ringing before finally dying away with a decrescendo.

I took my hands off the piano and sighed. "DAMN THAT FELT GOOD!" I put my hand to my head and smiled. It felt as if a nice weight was lifted off my shoulder.

They did not lie when they said music was cathartic.

"That song is so wonderfully crafted. But when both of us crescendoed on that deceptive cadence, I thought I was going to die of happiness! No one ever follows through on that… thanks so much for listening to me. And this song feels so nice on my vocal chords… I'm shaking from the rush! Look, look!"

"No no! When we both quieted was amazing! I didn't really see it coming but it worked really well! And my fingers were just hopping down those fifths! I love sequences and we really nailed the whole thing. You said you were shaking! Feel my pulse!" I said excitedly and put his hand on my wrist.

"Whoa…" he said and I was shocked to feel that his hands were really shaking.

Then I realized what I was doing. I let go of his hand and looked away.

Axel moved away from me. "I guess I really get your heart pumping don't I sweetheart?" Axel said with a smirk.

"Just shut up. We were having a nice bonding moment and you fucked it up…" I said.

"Why did I fuck it up? You were the one you suddenly backed out!" Axel said.

"N-no I didn't!" I said even though I knew that I did.

"This is why I don't like you! You'll say and do things to start an argument and then the minute I accuse you of it you immediately lie and get defensive. It's annoying and it's cowardly!" Axel said.

"How dare you? You have no right to call me a coward! And besides, it's not like you don't do annoying things! You'll act all arrogant, then the minute I call you out on it, you manipulate the situation so it seems like I'm the one at fault! I can't stand you! You're such an asshole!" I yelled.

"Dude! I'm not an asshole but I can be one when I need to be! I'll show you!" Axel said before storming out of the room.

I sighed before letting my head fall on the piano, a large cluster of notes mirroring the dissonance in my emotions.

Something tells me that tomorrow won't be any better…

A/N: REVIEW! I WANT MORE REVIEWS RAAAAAAWWWRRRR! (Sorry, I can't escape my addiction to reviews, it's a terrible curse really. So just indulge me and my burning desire shall be quelled... probably not) In the words of Marcello's famous piece, "Quella fiamma, giammai s'estinguera!" (a fire that will never be extinguished) I encourage you to look up the song 'Quella Fiamma' it's quite passionate but it sits a bit too low for my voice at the moment. Along with Pieta, Singore... they are probably my two favorite pieces in that 25 Italian Art Song book. But now I'm rambling! Gah! PRESS THE REVIEW BUTTON YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO! :D


	4. Chapter 4

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own… I wish they would stop making me say that! It hurts…

Chapter 4

Surprisingly, piano studies and ear training were really fun classes. Piano studies was really just a class where you get up and play the piano and have the other students and the teacher critique your performance. It was great to get a perspective from every angle. It helps a lot.

But I have discovered that I lag when playing fast moving pieces. The teacher said that it's because I lose myself in the music. She said I needed to find a safe median. So I promised myself that I would work my hardest on that problem.

But I guess I needed a fast pace song to practice on…

In ear training, I did a lot of sight-singing… which is really embarrassing because my voice is terrible. I felt better though after realizing that almost everyone else in my class were also instrumentalists and couldn't really sing either.

It was funny, actually… once all of the students stopped being so uptight about it, we all started to laugh at the sheer terribleness of our voices.

But the teacher got the biggest kick out of it.

He was a vocalist.

After those classes were over I ate dinner in the student union before returning to my dorm to sleep.

It was the next day that really stunk!

I walked into my private lesson with Mr. Fair only to find out that it wasn't so private.

Axel was standing next to a music stand with a smug look on his face.

I knew things were going to go bad from that moment. I looked to Mr. Fair with a puzzled face. "What's he doing in here?" I asked.

"Well, you are a collaborative pianist, yes?" Mr. Fair raised an eyebrow.

I sighed. "Yes…I'm guessing I need to play something for him?" I asked.

"Well, I heard from Ms. Lockheart that you needed work on fast pace songs, so I asked Axel to find a nice fast pace vocal piece that you could play. And I must say, he found a masterpiece." Mr. Fair said.

I frowned. This did not sound remotely good.

"I think you'll like it… I think it's brilliant!" Axel said with a fake smile plastered on his face.

I grumbled softly before taking the music and looking at the title.

Erlkönig by Franz Schubert

"Erlkönig means Elf-King!" Axel said with a smile.

I gave him a small smile before my jaw dropped at the music.

WAS THIS FUCKER TRYING TO KILL ME?

Eleven pages of nonstop eighth-note triplets… at a tempo of a quarter equalling 152… the fastest I've ever played was 132 and I lag!

I moved to the piano and sat. I looked at the notes before putting my hands on the piano. I started to play.

"Ah ah ah, Roxas! That's WAY too slow!" Axel said in a sweet tone.

"Axel! I've never seen this song before in my life! Forgive me if I try to figure out how it works slowly!" I snapped. I hated Axel…

I looked at the dynamics…

I've never felt so betrayed by Schubert in my entire life! Not only did he want me to play this at lightning speed…

He also wanted me to play _softly._

No! This was AXEL's fault!

"_Dude! I'm not an asshole but I can be one when I need to be! I'll show you!"_

I whined inwardly. If I had a gun I would be killing that gangly looking redheaded fucker!

This would take me weeks to learn… even at a slow pace I couldn't get the rhythm evenly.

"Roxas, the key to mastering this piece is relaxing your hands. Try it again." Mr. Fair said.

I took a deep breath and was about to start playing when Axel moved up to loom over me. I looked up at him with a scowl.

"Can I please have some room to breathe, Axel." It was less of a question and more like a demand.

Axel smirked and stepped away from me.

I started the first measure.

"Stop. Too tense, try it again." Mr. Fair said.

I nodded and tried again.

"Now you're too slow. And be careful about your fingering. The octave almost slipped to a seventh." Mr. Fair said.

I stopped.

"Try it again." He said.

I took a deep breath and shook out my hands. I put my hands in a nice, firm position on the piano and with a swift breath I started again.

Mr. Fair stopped me for the third time. "It's too loud. You need to leave room for dynamics." He said.

I tried for a fifth time.

"Just stop. Stop. I don't think this is going to work. Axel you need to find another lied to sing. This one is too challenging for Roxas right now. It's not going to be ready in three weeks. He can't even get past the first measure." Mr. Fair said.

I looked at my hands in shame. I could do it! I just needed more time. I could feel tears of frustration well up in my eyes.

"But Mr. Fair! Everyone was so excited about this piece! Can't Riku play for me? Roxas is only a freshman and he's not ready for my repertoire." Axel said with an evil looking grin.

Why were they talking as if I wasn't here? I'm sitting right here!

"Well maybe j-"

"I can do it! It'll be ready in three weeks! I promise!" I snapped before looking at my watch.

It was time to go. I stood abruptly and glared at Axel before leaving the room. I hated him! I hated him so much! He just humiliated me in front of the head of instrumental studies!

I'll show him! I will have this piece perfectly learned if it's the last thing I do! I moved quickly down the hallway and out of the building. I ran over to the dorms building and locked myself away in a practice room.

I searched through my pocket for my ipod. When I fished it out I opened the app for a metronome. I set the correct tempo and placed it on the piano. I allowed myself to internalize the tempo… I could do this.

I started… I was keeping up the tempo but all the dynamics were gone and some of the notes were missing.

I sighed and tried again.

Yes! I got it! It's not too loud and it's at the right speed… all notes were accounted for.

But after the third page… my arm was cramping, badly.

I stopped and took a deep breath. This is so hard…

I know I can do this! But… why isn't it coming out the way I want it to.

"Well, hello there Roxas! I saw you in the practice room and I thought maybe I could coach you." Ms. Lockheart said.

I looked at her. "I want to learn this song… b-but… it's so hard to play…" I said quietly.

"Well, anything worth doing shouldn't come easy! I mean, you're at T-Con for god's sake! You should know!" Ms. Lockheart said with a smile.

"I know… but Mr. Fair and Axel say I wont be able to have it ready in three weeks… and I'm starting to believe them." I said.

"Well… what piece is it?" she asked.

"Erlkönig… by Schubert." I said.

"Oooohhh! That is a beast! You have to have it ready in three weeks?" she asked.

I nodded.

"Okay… you really want to play this piece?" she asked.

I nodded. "I want to show them that I can do it! So he'll stop looking down on me…" I said.

Ms. Lockheart gave me a puzzled look before standing. "Don't play the piano." She said.

"What?" I asked.

"You can't play the piano this week. Come with me to my office." Ms. Lockheart said.

I followed her with a frown on my face… how was I supposed to learn anything if I couldn't play the piano?

We walked to the main building again and down the hall to her office. "For the rest of this week, you are not to play the piano." She shuffled around for something. "Here." She said and handed me something.

"What's this?" I asked.

"It's only the greatest thing ever invented! It's the Cando digi-flex finger exerciser!" she said.

I smiled. "So my fingers are going to work out for a week?" I asked.

"Yes! And don't forget these?" she said and handed me something else.

"What are these?" I asked.

"They're my balls." She said.

"WHAT!" I asked incredulously.

"Twirl my balls in your hand!" she yelled.

I jumped and started to spin the silver balls in my hand. "So this is another exercise?" I asked.

"The flexer is for strength, my balls are for dexterity!" she said excitedly.

"Ummm… could you please stop calling them your balls? It's making me feel weird…" I said.

"Fine… devote today and tomorrow to the digi-flex… use _the _balls for the rest of the week. And also… do arm stretches every morning till the performance. Got it?" she asked.

I nodded and smiled. "I'll show them! I can do this!" I said and hugged Ms. Lockheart tightly.

"Thank you so much!" I said and ran back to my dorm.

I put the silver balls in my bag before I plopped onto my bed and began to use the flexer. After about twenty minutes I frowned at the burning sensation in my fingers. This was WAY harder than I thought.

I looked to the clock… it was time for theory.

I stood with the digi-flex in hand… I grabbed all of my stuff for theory and walked to class.

With every step I squeezed the flexer. When I got to the classroom I switched hands. I couldn't believe I was breaking a sweat from squeezing something! I took out my song analysis and smiled. I had worked really hard on it and I hoped that the teacher would enjoy my work.

"Alright everyone. Turn in your work to me. Place them on the left hand corner of this desk in alphabetical order." He said.

I stood and turned in my paper, knowing I was first on the list.

Mr. S looked at me and I smiled. "Good afternoon!" I said cheerily.

I started to walk away when Mr. S spoke. "What is that in your hand?"

"Only the greatest thing ever invented! It's the Cando digi-flex finger exerciser!" I said with my greatest impersonation of Ms. Lockheart.

Which was DAMN good by the way.

Mr. S chuckled. "She must really like you." He said.

I cocked my head to the side. "Why?" I asked.

"She usually doesn't lend out her stuff to students. Don't let that contraption distract you from my class." He said.

"Never! This class is too much fun!" I said and sat down.

"Kiss ass!" The student next to me whispered.

I frowned. "I really do like this class." I said.

"Sure…" The student said. "My name is Demyx. I'm a freshman guitarist."

I smiled. "I'm Roxas. Collaborative pianist. I'm a freshman too. It's a good thing I'm not the only underclassman in this class."

"Yeah… I thought I was alone too! Let's be friends!" he said.

I giggled. "Sure. Do you know Leon? He's a senior guitarist." I said.

"DO I KNOW HIM?"

"Shhhh!" I said and covered his mouth.

Demyx pushed my hand away. "Sorry about that… yeah, I know him! He's like my idol! I hope to be as great of a guitarist as him one day!" he said excitedly.

"You two children… if you do not quiet yourselves, I will do it for you!" Mr. S said with a look of fire.

I shrunk away from Demyx and shut my mouth tightly.

"Sorry…" Demyx said and picked up his pencil.

The rest of the class went on as it was supposed to… uninterrupted.

I was walking back to the dorm after eating… my arms felt like they were going to fall off. But I pressed on! No one was going to stop me from being able to play this piece.

I looked to the flexer in my right hand and squeezed it again.

Then I bumped into someone. "AH! I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going!" I said and kneeled down to pick up the papers that had fallen to the floor.

"Be more careful." The guy said.

"Yeah, I know… I'm sorry." I said again and picked up more papers. They were marked up copies of scores.

"Are you a conducting student?" I asked.

"Yes."

"That's great. I'm Roxas… a collab. pianist." I said and handed him his papers.

"Zexion… " he said and stood.

"Yeah… sorry again for knocking you over." I said with a sheepish grin.

"Fine, goodbye." He said before walking away. I shrugged before squeezing the flexer a couple more times. I sighed, I really didn't want to go back to the dorms…

I moved to the lobby-ish area in the main building and sat in an armchair. People watching would be entertaining enough.

I continued to exercise my fingers as I watched the people come and go in and out of the building.

"No no! It was so funny! We were in the middle of chorus and someone burps… of course you'd think Mr. Saïx would get angry, but he didn't! Instead he told the girl who burped that her belch was an A flat! Leave it to him and his perfect pitch to guess the tone of her gas!" A student said with a laugh.

"OH MAN! You totally missed out! Today in ear training, we called roll but since we were all vocalists, Mr. Strife told us pick a pitch to sing when he called our names. So by the end of roll, every one was singing on a different pitch and it was just one big cluster of sound! It was great!"

"That does sound fun!"

"And leave it to Axel to sing the highest note in the room! I think it was like a B flat or something… that guy's range is out of this world!"

I frowned and squeezed the flexer tightly. Man I hate that guy! Just you wait and see Axel Sonheim, I'm gonna strengthen these hands so I can crush your skull with them!

"What's up Roxas?" Riku said and sat on the sofa next to me.

"A cloud…" I said and continued to squeeze.

"How have your classes been?" he asked.

"All of the one's without Axel have been great…" I mumbled.

"What?" Riku asked.

"They've been great!" I said with a fake smile.

"Well… if you ever find yourself having trouble… you can talk to me." Riku said with a concerned look.

I sighed… this guy was way too nice for his own good. "Thanks for your concern… I have everything under control." I said.

"Okay then." He said and turned… he paused before turning back to me. "Is that a Cando digi-flex finger exerciser?" Riku asked with a smile.

"Yeah… what of it!" I said feeling defensive.

"No! I love those things! They are such a good workout!" Riku said and pulled his own out of his pocket.

I laughed. "We match!" I said.

"I'm happy to see you working hard… but be sure to condition yourself. If you squeeze that thing all day without a break you might hurt yourself." Riku said.

I nodded. "Thanks!" I said.

I squeezed the flexer a couple more times before putting it away. I stretched my arms…

They were sore… Well, I guess I have been exercising for like six hours. I probably need to go to sleep. It was going to be a long three weeks. If I wanted to accomplish anything, I didn't need any distractions.

I fell onto my bed with a sigh and set my alarm clock.

"Early to bed, early to rise, makes you healthy, wealthy, and wise… I will succeed!" I said before falling to sleep.

A/N: And so the race against the clock begins! Will Roxas be able to make it? Give me 10 reviews and you'll be one chapter closer to finding out! YOU CAN DO IT! I ONLY NEED AT LEAST TEN! :D


	5. Chapter 5

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **…sigh… I hate writing these. I don't own, don't sue me.

As promised, after ten reviews, here's a new chapter! Enjoy and review some more!

Chapter 5

When my alarm clock went off Wednesday morning I sat up and started the day with some arm stretches.

My arms were a little sore from yesterday but that wouldn't stop me from working hard to get this song ready.

I took the flexer from my bag and began to squeeze as I picked my clothes for the day.

I walked to the bathroom and got ready. I left the flexer by the sink as I took a shower.

When that was done, I moved to the café downstairs and bought a blueberry muffin for breakfast.

I couldn't exercise on an empty stomach.

I had performance class this week and so I walked to the auditorium and waited quietly for the class to begin. It was a nice workout to flex my hands at the tempo of the music. I was really determined to get my hands and arms as strong as they needed to be to work as a musician.

I exercised through all of my classes. By the time I was in my dorm room, my hands ached when I pulled the bed covers over me. With a full eight hours of sleep, my hands would be ready for yet another work out tomorrow.

Thursday marked the beginning of my hand exercises with the silver balls. Unfortunately, they made a clanking noise as I turned them in my hand. I couldn't use them in class so I simply twirled them in my hands as I ate and as I moved between classes.

Twirling those silver balls around in your hand for longer than a few minutes is finger torture. I had no idea that people had muscles around their knuckles… I don't know what they were called but they were aching.

When the week finally came to an end, I made my way to Ms. Lockhart's room to return her finger exercisers.

I knocked on her door and she opened the door. "Hey there! How are you feeling?" she asked.

"I'm feeling great! I want to see what a week of training did to my stamina." I said.

"Well… if you've come to return the hand equipment, you still need it. I know you're eager, but you aren't allowed to play the music at a speedy tempo yet." She said.

"What? Why? When am I going to practice the music?" I asked.

"I never said you couldn't play the song, you just can't play it fast. It least half the speed it's supposed to be. You need to woodshed." Ms. Lockhart said.

"What should I look out for as I'm woodshed-ing?" I asked.

"Just… listen to every note… everything. You need to make sure every note has significance. I know you know how to love notes; make sure you've loved every single one of them before the week is over. And don't stop exercising." Mr. Lockhart said and placed her hands on my shoulders.

I sighed before I gave her a smile. Ms. Lockhart was the only person who believed in me. Even though I was anxious, it would be wrong of me to ignore her instruction.

She trusted me and I wouldn't let her down.

"So I can go to a practice room and practice this during piano studies?" I asked.

Ms. Lockhart smiled. "Yes you may. Remember what I said." She warned.

I nodded and headed back to the dorm building practice rooms. My fingers were tingling. It had been a whole week without the piano…

I didn't really realize how much I missed the piano until I sat at it and my eyes almost watered a little.

I placed the music on the piano and rested my fingers on the piano keys. I took a breath and was about to press down on the keys when suddenly I heard something.

It was my piece… only at the right tempo.

I moved out of my practice room and looked down the hall. I searched for a practice room with it's door slightly open. I wouldn't have heard it if the door was closed.

And that's when I spotted it. I moved down the hall and looked through the window of the door.

Axel was practicing our piece… with Riku…

Who could already play it at the right speed… without any mistakes at all.

I stood against the wall next to the crack in the door and listened to them practice. It was already performance ready. They might as well have been on stage.

I felt all my pride as a pianist sink lower and lower as they moved through the song. When it was over a moved back to my practice room. I looked at the music in front of me.

Why? Why did Axel have to be so cruel… and why did I have to be such a sad excuse of an accompanist?

Suddenly a wave of anger hit me and I grabbed the binder of music and threw it to the floor. I sank to the floor with a groan of disgust.

I looked to the binder and examined how the papers were bending between the weight of the binder and the floor.

I frowned and picked up the binder, straightened the music and closed it. My fingers ran over my name and the smiley face I had placed next to my name when I was on the plane ride to Twilight City.

With a sigh, I hugged the music to my chest. I couldn't help but feel guilty for throwing the poor binder… if anything, it was the only thing that could offer me any type of comfort.

"I'm sorry…" I said softly under my breath and moved back to the piano. I opened the binder again and placed it on the piano.

With a deep breath I calmly pressed the first notes of the piece.

I almost fell off of the bench from the sound that rang from the piano. It was so loud.

I just played as I normally did… I pressed my fingers down again.

The piano sounded loudly.

I smiled. A week of exercise really changed the heaviness of my hand. I started again, slowly.

I laughed as I played. "Are you kidding me? This is amazing!" I said aloud as I continued to play.

Everything sounded more confident and bright. Every note seemed to have something to say, like they were pieces of a puzzle. Without the sharp tone of one note, the picture would be lost.

When I finished playing all eleven pages, my arms weren't cramping at all. I was so proud of myself. It sounded perfect when I played it slowly.

I practiced throughout the rest of the week, feeling absolutely amazed by how much improvement I had gained… and all just from stretching and exercising my hands everyday. I loved the way my piano sounded. It was prouder than before and that was something I needed.

On Sunday I decided to take a stroll around the school. I was feeling pretty relaxed and a simple walk sounded like a good idea. I was passing the vocal section of the main building and I couldn't help but be amazed by the differences between the instrumental halls.

There was more color… and everything seemed warmer.

"What are you doing here?" a voice said behind me.

I turned. "I'm just walking around." I said.

"You were looking for me." Axel said arrogantly.

I shook my head. "No… I was just looking around." I said and continued my walk. I didn't feel like being around Axel. He made me feel tense and it would only be a matter of time before he would get on my nerves and I'd have to leave anyway.

"Sweetheart, about the Lieder concert on Friday… you can come if you want, but you don't have to play anything. Riku is covering for you." Axel said.

I could practically feel the smirk that was probably on his face.

"Whatever, Axel." I said and turned the corner. I spotted someone sitting on a bench looking solemn.

I walked over. "Pardon me… but are you okay?" I asked.

The blonde girl looked up at me with an angry face. "It's none of your business!" she snapped.

Her voice sounded terrible.

"Well, I'm sorry for disturbing you." I said and began to walk away.

"W-wait." Her voice wheezed. "You can obviously understand why I'm upset."

"I'm sure your voice will come back. Just rest." I said.

"It won't come back." She squawked.

"Why not?" I asked.

"I have nodules… I have to get them removed. I've leaving tomorrow and I'm not coming back." She sobbed out in her raspy voice.

I frowned. It was so sad… I couldn't help but pull her into a hug. This poor woman just lost her dream… I kept imagining what would happen if I had hurt my hands. I would be so devastated.

"I know I'm just a stranger… but I want to tell you this before you leave. Everything happens for a reason. If you're meant to sing, then when you get those nodules removed, you'll get back on your feet and start all over. This is only a hurdle you have to jump over. You can do it. You seem like a really determined person once you put your mind to something." I said.

She pulled from me and smiled. "You're right." She said.

I nodded and stood. "Hell yeah I'm right! Now stand up and look proud. You can do anything within human limits if you try!" I said.

The girl stood, wiped her eyes, put on her glasses, and smiled. "Quistis." she said in the clearest voice she could manage.

I smiled. "Roxas, good luck." I said.

She nodded and walked back down the hall.

I took out the flexer from my pocket and squeezed it. I needed to keep working hard too.

"I thought you were taking a walk." Axel said.

I looked at him. "I was but I got distracted." I said.

"I don't think you can afford being distracted. If you think your are going to be my accompanist, then you need to step up your game." He said.

"Are you trying to pick a fight with me? I'm not in the mood." I said.

"No. I'm not picking a fight. I'm trying to tell you the truth." He said.

"I know the truth. It became apparent to me a week ago. Please don't trample on my pride anymore." I said.

Axel looked surprised by how mellow I was being. If he had told me this last week, I probably would have blew up in his face out of anger. But honestly, right now, I didn't need him to tell me things I already knew.

"These halls look nice. But now that I've finished looking at them, I'm going back to my dorm. I'll see you later I guess." I said and moved to the stairwell.

"Are you okay?" Axel asked.

I didn't answer him… it wasn't like he was really concerned anyway. I flexed my hands as I moved back to my dorm. When I got there, I talked to Sora for a while before going to sleep.

The next morning, I jumped out of bed and did my stretches before getting ready for my classes.

I got all the stuff I would need and I ran all the way to Ms. Lockhart's office to see if she was awake.

I knocked on her door.

She opened it and yawned. "What brings you here this early in the morning?" she asked.

"I can start practicing the piece fast now right?" I asked excitedly.

"Yes you can. You can give my flexer back… but you should still use the silver balls." She said.

I nodded. "Thank you!" I said and handed her the flexer back.

"You're welcome Roxas. It's not every year that we get such a hard working student at the school." She said.

I bowed a little in thanks before moving to Theory class. I really enjoyed theory class because I got to talk to Demyx. He was always fun to talk to.

After a little chitchat with Demyx, who asked me to call him 'Dem,' class started and we quieted.

Mr. S seemed to be in a really bad mood.

"Sir, are you okay?" somebody asked from the back.

"There is a Lieder concert on Friday and five of my singers do not have their repertoire learned. That kind of negligence pisses me off the most." He snapped.

We all sort of coiled into ourselves and listened to the lesson quietly.

I wondered who didn't learn their pieces, certainly not Axel. He had his piece memorized last week.

I shrugged and after an hour more of theory, I moved to a practice room to finally play this piece.

I placed the music on the piano and sat quickly onto the piano bench. I put my hand on the keys and with a swift breath I began.

The speed was great, the notes were great, the dynamics were great.

But the sound wasn't right. It wasn't as it was when I was playing it slow. I looked at my hands, what was wrong?

I played the song again and again. It wasn't full… the sound was raw and vulnerable. I didn't understand why there was such a large change between what I was playing last week and what I was playing today.

But I kept trying.

When it was time for my other classes, I kept worrying over what was wrong with that piece.

What could it be that's holding me back now?

I thought about it all day, even as I ate.

I had no answer… I slept and tried again on the piano before class.

It still wasn't working. All of Tuesday was spent thinking about how I could possibly fix this dilemma.

I also twirled the silver balls in my hands as I thought.

I didn't talk to anyone. Not even the teachers… this was something I needed to learn on my own…

And I had three more days to do it.

I was screwed…

Shit.

A/N: Isn't that the LOVELIEST way to end the chapter! Review if you want more! :D


	6. Chapter 6

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **Dude… so tired of writing these…

And the plot moves forward!

**Erlkönig- a Schubert art song (or Lied - plural Lieder) about a father and son riding through the forest. The son keeps insisting that he sees an Elf-king in the forest. This Elf-King invites the son to play and the son keeps refusing. He's afraid and tells his father but the father ignores him. Then finally, the Elf-king says that if the son wont come willingly he will TAKE him. The son screams for help but the father doesn't know what to do. When father and son finally arrive at their destination, the father realizes that his son is dead.**

Chapter 6

Wednesday morning I woke up early and pulled out a notebook. I needed to figure out a schedule that would give me the most practice time without messing with my studies.

I pulled out Ms. Lockhart's silver balls and I twirled them in my hands as I thought. Every practice hour I could spend working on the piece. In between classes and during meals I would work with the balls. My homework was usually done after hours so I couldn't practice then…

Unless, I did it afterwards.

If I slept for four hours instead of eight, that wold give me four hours of practice time that I didn't have before.

Yes, that would work! I quickly wrote out my schedule and with a stretch I got out all of my things and moved to take a shower. Maybe if I hurried fast enough, I could squeeze in practice in the morning too.

I had to figure this out. But what could possibly be missing, I understand the dynamics, I treasure every note without lagging, my technique is perfect! I was sure of it! But there was still something wrong. It just didn't sound right!

I groaned as I washed the shampoo from my hair. Just thinking about it made me extremely frustrated. The thought of Axel acknowledging my limitations this early on in the game would just kill me! And Riku, I wouldn't lose to him! I just wouldn't!

It wasn't like I was really angry with him though…he wasn't really involved in this. But my competitiveness kept giving me an unnecessary mean streak towards him.

I hated Axel and when I show him that I CAN do this piece I will rub it in his face and then I'll punch him in the face for doing this to me. I'm reliable goddamnit!

I groaned again as I got out of the shower. I got dressed as quickly as possible and ran out of the bathroom.

"Whoa! Hey, are you okay, cuz? You look very disheveled…" Sora asked giving me a concerned look as I put on my shoes.

"I'm fine! I just... I gotta go!" I snapped without meaning to and running out the door. I moved to the café and bought a bagle. I ate it quickly as I moved to the other building. I found an empty practice room and moved straight to the piano.

I played the piece over and over. Each time resulting in more mistakes due to my restlessness and need for perfection. I groaned for the third time today.

I played it again, my hands barreling out of control, my tempo erratic, my dynamics a complete mess. I took a deep breath but it didn't help. I let out a dry sob and pulled at my hair.

I stood abruptly and yelled at myself. "GET IT TO-FUCKING-GETHER, ROXAS! YOUR PARENTS DIDN'T PAY THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS FOR YOU TO FUCK UP!"

With another deep breath I sat calmly at the piano and started again. This time it sounded better, not perfect, but better. I sighed and continued, hoping that if I give it a little more I could get the results I wanted.

I played on… and after a while. I started to feel as if I was being mocked my the music. It really was laughing at me. The Elf-King was laughing in my face and the Father and son were simply chuckling with looks of pity on their faces. Every chord a giggle, every ascending line a laugh. I slammed down the last chord growled in anger.

I looked at the clock and relized that I had to get to class. I was thankful for that because I needed a break from practicing. I suddenly felt extremely claustrophobic in the room and sighed with relief when I left it.

I pulled the silver balls out of my pocket and rolled them in my hands as I moved to my theory class.

"Are you okay, Roxy?" Demyx asked as I entered the room.

"Yeah, I'm totally fine… I'm just glad I can relax in this class." I said trying to convince myself that I wasn't actually freaking the fuck out.

"Okay… just don't push yourself." Dem said with a smile and patted me on the back.

During the class we got to compose a small ten measure piece with BACH motif. It was fun and I really enjoyed trying to fit the four little notes discreetly into my piece.

When class was over I frowned when I realized I had a private lesson… most likely with Axel. I worked my hands around the silver balls as I moved back to the practice rooms to look for Mr. Fair.

"Oh, Roxas!" I turned to see Mr. Fair smiling at me.

"I'm just here to tell you that your private lesson is canceled because I need to work with Axel and Riku seeing as they're getting ready for this Leider concert. So just use this time as a practice hour." Mr. Fair said.

To be honest, I wanted to cry right then and there. Mr. Fair was telling me I wasn't worth it. He had not an ounce of hope that I would learn this piece… and that was a big blow.

To have your own advisor give up on you.

I nodded and quickly found an empty practice room before I leaned against the door and cried. "Fuck! I can do this! I know I can!" I sobbed.

It just wasn't fair that no one else believed that… with the exception of Ms. Lockhart. I promised I wouldn't let her down… I would NOT let her down!

I wouldn't let myself down.

With a sigh I sat at the piano and played through the piece slowly again, concentrating on all of the sounds I should hear. I felt a lot better after playing it slowly over and over.

I decided I would play something else for a few mintues… just so I could take a break from the intensity that was Schubert. I pulled out a piece called Intorno all'idol mio. It was simple but it was beautiful. I loved it so much that I often played it during my free time when I was at home. I only wished I could have a voice to fill me with warmth.

"_Intorno all'idol mio spirate pur, spirate. Aure, aure, soavi e grate. E nelle guancie ellete, Baciatelo per me. Baciatelo per me. Cortesi, cortesi aurette!" _I almost jumped when I heard a female voice behind me.

What was it with people and coming into practice rooms uninvited? With a soft exhale I moved onto the second half. Halfway grateful that someone could sing the sweet melody.

"_Al mio ben, che riposa Su l'ali della quiete, grati, grati sogni assistete. E il mio racchiuso ardore Svelate gli per me, O larve, O larve d'amore!_" the voice finished softly and I let out a sigh. Playing with this singer was very pleasant and very peaceful.

I turned to see a silver haired girl smile at me. "That was lovely." She said softly.

I smiled. "Your voice is really what is lovely. Thank you for singing for me." I said.

"You looked so troubled playing a song that supposed to be a lullaby really. So I thought maybe if I came in here and sang softly, it would calm your nerves." She explained.

"You really did help. This is such a beautiful piece so I thought playing it would keep my mind off of things." I admitted.

"Well, I'm glad I could help. You seem like a nice person and your piano is so passionate." She said before turning to leave.

"My name is Roxas." I said my name hoping it would prompt her to say hers.

"Xion." She said simpy before walking out of the room.

After a few more minutes of playing through what was in my binder, it was finally time for lunch.

I bought lunch from a little sandwich shop about a block from campus. I walked back to campus and sat in the lobby area to eat. I was eating quietly with the silver balls in one hand and my sandwich in the other. I was really surprised by my ability to multi-task. Two weeks ago, I never would have been able to do this so well.

And of course, I jinxed myself with that thought as one of the silver balls flew from my hands and rolled down the carpeted walkway. I placed my sandwich down and seached the walkway for where it might have come to a stop. I couldn't find it on the ground so I looked at the people passing by to see if they had picked it up.

Then I spotted it… it was in the hands of someone I didn't feel like approaching but I knew I had to.

I walked up to Axel. "Will you please return that silver ball to me, please?" I asked holding out my hand for it.

Axel smirked and hid the silver ball behind his back. "Give me one good reason why I should." He said.

I ran a hand through my hair and sighed. I really was not in the mood to deal with him. He was wasting my valuable time. "It's not actually mine, someone let me borrow them. I need it back so I can return to training my hands." I explained already starting to feel anxious. I didn't have all the time in the world like he did, I wasn't some prodigy who could just do things without flaw.

"Training? What on earth could this little ball do for training." He asked.

Now I was getting upset. He was testing my patience and I've been on edge this whole week. I don't think I could hold myself back from punching his lights out. "Axel, _please!_" I begged, I just wanted to finish my lunch so I could figure out what to do with my dilemma.

Axel gave me an odd look before handed the silver ball back to me. I sighed in relief and said my thanks before going back to my table to finish eating.

With a grunt I looked at my hands. I knew I couldn't avoid the big issue. It wouldn't go away if I just ignored it and reverted back to playing the slow pieces I was used to. I had to work for what I wanted and that work was practice. No matter what happens in that practice room, I wouldn't turn away from the music that _deserved better _than the best that I could do. So until I could do better than the best I could do, I wouldn't give up.

"Alright Schubert… if you had to go crazy in order to write your music, then I'm just going to have to go crazy in order to play it!" I said and stood abruptly.

It was time to get to work.

-Cantabile-

It was now two in the morning and I was now going back to my dorm after wholling myself up in a practice room for hours. I was proud of myself for devoting all of that time to that Schubert piece… but it wasn't getting any better. And that upset me more than anything.

I went straight to bed and when I woke up the next morning I felt so sluggish but I had to pick up the pace. Schubert was counting on me. I got in the shower, got dressed and went right back to a practice room. I played the piece over and over, at this point I didn't even have to look at the music. It was memorized like the back of my hands.

I went to classes, in the ones where I could afford distractions I would watch my hands carefully as I imagined the piano underneath my fingers. I could almost feel the music play through me. G minor was such an intense key.

"…xas. Roxas!" I jumped when I heard someone call my name.

"Roxas, you need to get to your next class. Theory right?" Ms. Lockhart said.

"Oh yeah, sorry." I said softly and pulled out the silver balls and twirled them in my hands as I moved to the Theory classroom.

When I entered the classroom everyone was smiling and highfiving eachother. I put on a puzzled look and walked over to Demyx. "Hey, what's going on?" I asked.

"Mr. S cancelled class because he's in charge of organizing the Lieder concert tomorrow. He said we should all just work on assingments for other classes or go to a practice room." Demyx explained.

I thought, should I practice or should I finish my other work? I decided on doing my work, I had practice hours later on in the day so I could deal with practicing then.

"Are you staying in here?" I looked up to see Kairi smile at me.

"Yeah, I'm going to finish my class work." I said.

"I'll work up here too then." Kairi said and sat in the desk next to me.

The room was quiet as we did our work. The only noises were the scribbling of pencil and the whirling sound the silver balls made when they spun in my hand.

"What are you doing with those?" Kairi asked and I looked to see her gesturing to the silver balls.

"They enhance the dexterity in my hands. I kind of have a big project and I needed to train up." I said.

"Wow, and when do you have to have this big project mastered?" she asked.

"Tomorrow…" I said with a frown.

"That doesn't look like the face of someone who is prepared." Kairi said with a wince.

"There's just something that isn't right… I've tried over and over to figure out what it is but I can't seem to figure it out. I can't ask a teacher because I feel like that would be admitting defeat… and I will not fail my teachers like that." I said.

"Well maybe, you just need to work as hard as you can until it's time to do your thing. I always feel that my performaces are significantly better than my rehearsals just because of the sheer fact that there's an audience. There's nothing better than the thrill of knowing there are people out there ready to hear you be you… I'm not saying everything will be alright when you get on stage… I'm just saying that by the end of it all, if you've put the kind of work you seem to be putting into your big project, you'll be proud of yourself regardless of what happens." Kairi said.

I smiled at her and nodded. That was something I think I needed to hear. I know it'll be disappointing if I don't really show Axel and Mr. Fair that I can do it perfectly, but I'd still feel better knowing that I had done something for my own benefit, on my own. I'll be comforted by the fact that at least to myself, I amounted to something that I hadn't before. "Thank you, Kairi. I feel a little better now." I said.

"Good." She said and we got back to work.

When it was time to go, I gathered my things and decided I would start my practicing early. I walked to the café and bought a smoothie, I then took a sharpie out of my bag and wrote: 'DO NOT THROW AWAY' on the side so that when people saw it outside of my practice room they would know it was still being consumed. Students weren't allowed to bring food and drinks into the practice rooms so I would have to leave it outside the door.

What I would do is go through the piece once and then step outside of the room for a sip of my smoothie. When it was all gone I threw it away and moved back to the practice room.

Ear training class was really nerve wracking. There was nothing I could do towards my project in that class. I needed to be alert so that I could sight-sing the notes on the paper Mr. Strife gave us. When that class was over I was only happy to get the hell out of that room and move straight to practicing again.

Luckily I had finished all of the work I needed to do for the night with Kairi in Mr. S's classroom. So I decided to stay in the practice room until it was ready for tomorrow.

I started to become panicked again when it was going on four in the morning and I still hadn't made much progress. What was wrong with me, what I was hearing just wasn't right! It's not right! I could play it fast, I could play it slow, I could exaggerate the dynamics, I could play with no dynamics at all… but nothing I did seemed to even hint at what might be missing.

I wouldn't stop until this worked. The dorm practice rooms stayed open at all hours so I wouldn't have to leave.

I looked to the clock. The Leider concert was for four in the after noon. Classes were cancelled due to the concert so that was something I wouldn't have to worry about. But I would have to get ready for it at some point so that gave me like ten hours to figure this out.

I was so tired and I was hungry and my head was throbbing from over stimulation but I had to keep going. This was for Ms. Lockhart and Schubert.

Ms. Lockhart believed in me.

And Schubert was giving me the opportunity to improve, to become something better than myself.

I played and played and played… nothing seemed to work. In fact, everything started to get worse. I was really starting to freak out. I looked to the clock, it was ten minutes to four… I had failed.

With a sob I looked at my hands and tears started to fall down my face. I was close wasn't I? If I had more time I would have gotten it right, right? "No…" I cried and covered my face in shame. "I'm so sorry Ms. Lockhart… I'm so sorry Schubert. I failed your music. It's so amazing but I couldn't handle it." I said.

"_You are pathetic!" _I jumped when I heard a voice and I turned to see someone I had never met before.

But he looked so familiar. I looked to the Schubert book I had and gasped.

"SCHUBERT!" I yelled.

"_Yes, you twit! It is I, Franz Schubert. And I am utterly flabbergasted by your idiocy!" _Schubert scolded.

I rubbed my eyes and looked to see him still standing there. Yep, I had gone insane from being in a small room for too long with no food or sleep. "I'm hallucinating!" I yelped.

"_Of course you are! I've been dead for around two hundred years! But I simply had to reprimand you for being an imbicile." _Schubert said with a snap.

"I already apologized! Something is just wrong with my playing. It's always missing something!" I explained in my defense.

"_IT'S AN ENSEMBLE YOU IDIOT! IT'S NOT SUPPOSED TO SOUND PERFECT WITH JUST YOU ALONE! IT'S A VOCAL PIECE FOR GOD'S SAKE! IT WILL ONLY SOUND PERFECT IF YOU HAVE A SINGER!" _Schubert thundered and I jumped at the sound of his angry voice.

"So I can do it?" I asked.

"_That is up to you, can you?" _Schubert asked.

"Yes! Yes I can! How could I have been so stupid? This whole time, it was so simple!" I laughed at my own lack of common sense.

"_I don't know, how could you have been so stupid? Now get ready for the recital!" _Schubert commanded.

"But it's four o'clock! It's already started!" I cried in agony.

"_What of it? Do you really think the faculty would put Axel at the beginning to upstage everyone else? Of course not, he's probably last on the program, now go make haste!" _Schubert said.

I nodded and turned to gather my things. "You won't be disappointed, Schubert. I'll make you proud!" I said and turned back to see no one.

I laughed and ran out of the practice room. I really did have to go crazy to figure this all out. I opened my dormroom and moved straight to my suitcase. I grabbed my nice clothes and bolted towards the bathroom. I cleaned myself and put on my clothes faster than I've ever done in my entire life. I wasn't even sure if my tie was on right.

I grabbed my binder and ran as fast as I could out the door, down the stairs, over to the next building, and into the auditorium.

People were clapping and I looked to see who was moving onto the stage.

Axel was walking to the front of the piano and I saw Riku following behind him.

"Riku!" I yelled and ran down the stairs of the auditorium and up the stairs of the stage. I grabbed Riku's arm and cought my breath a little before speaking.

"No one really believed I could do it but I promised! I promised I would learn it perfectly for this concert! I can do it! Schubert said I could! Let me go! Please! Riku, let me play!" I babbled looking in Riku's eyes.

I was begging him. I probably looked like a crazy person asking for drugs but I had to get on that stage and show everyone that I was worth it.

Riku gave me a concerned look but moved down the stars of the stage to sit in the audience.

"Thank you!" I said with tears in my eyes.

"Don't disappoint me, Roxas." He said with a smile.

I nodded and moved to the piano. Axel looked completely uneasy. I mean, I would too quite frankly. I had never practiced with him and the last time he had heard me play the piece I couldn't even get through the first measure.

"I can follow anything you throw at me Axel, you can trust me." I whispered.

Axel sighed and looked to the ground. When his head went back up, he was in character.

And like a clash of lightning I began. I could see father and son riding through the forest in a storm.

Axel opened his mouth to sing. _"__Wer reitet so spät durch Nacht und Wind? __Es ist der Vater mit seinem Kind; __Er hat den Knaben wohl in dem Arm, __Er faßt ihn sicher, er hält ihn warm." _

Another clash or thunder from the piano. The forest restless with the unknown. The night ready to snatch up all things good.

"_Mein Sohn, was birgst du so bang dein Gesicht?" —__"Siehst, Vater, du den Erlkönig nicht? __Den Erlenkönig mit Kron und Schweif?" —__"Mein Sohn, es ist ein Nebelstreif."_ My piano mirrored the emotions of the conversing characters in the song.

The fear of the young child, the assurance of the father.

Suddenly my music became playful, here comes the elf-king. He tries to entice the little boy with fancy robes and gold. _"Du liebes Kind, komm, geh mit mir! __Gar schöne Spiele spiel' ich mit dir; __Manch' bunte Blumen sind an dem Strand, __Meine Mutter hat manch gülden Gewand."_

I pounded on the piano, my forte resembling the fearful yelps of the frightened boy who cries for his father. _"Mein Vater, mein Vater, und hörest du nicht, __Was Erlenkönig mir leise verspricht?" —__"Sei ruhig, bleibe ruhig, mein Kind; __In dürren Blättern säuselt der Wind." _The father still in disbelief, the music calmed as he tries to calm his son.

The Elf-king refuses to give up. The playfulness doubles, he promises that his daughters will sing and dance for him every night. _"Willst, feiner Knabe, du mit mir gehen? __Meine Töchter sollen dich warten schön; __Meine Töchter führen den nächtlichen Reihn, __Und wiegen und tanzen und singen dich ein."_

The son cries out again, fear evident in the upper tones of the piano, Axel's ascending line. The urgency in his voice. He was amazing. _"Mein Vater, mein Vater, und siehst du nicht dort __Erlkönigs Töchter am düstern Ort?" —__"Mein Sohn, mein Sohn, ich seh es genau: __Es scheinen die alten Weiden so grau. —" _The piano thundered again, this time in anger. The father is tired of him son's nonsense. He tells him it is only the shining of the trees.

I watched Axel's face become sweet and loving. The Elf-King tries to entice for the last time. _"Ich liebe dich, mich reizt deine schöne Gestalt; __Und bist du nicht willig, so brauch ich Gewalt." _Axel's face suddenly turned evil and malicious, the Elf-King decides to take him by storm. Axel's voice growling in anger.

But it changes again. The Son screaming hysterically for his father to save him_. "Mein Vater, mein Vater, jetzt faßt er mich an!__Erlkönig hat mir ein Leids getan!" _My piano mirrors the terrified screams of the son.

The father finally alarmed by his son's screams races through the night. Axel's voice and my paino molding beautifully into themselves to create the most alarming rising tesion I had ever felt. "_Dem Vater grauset's, er reitet geschwind, __Er hält in Armen das ächzende Kind, __Erreicht den Hof mit Müh' und Not; __In seinen Armen das Kind war tot." _Then it all goes silent…

The child is dead.

And I play the final chords as if they were the big 'Dun, Dun, DUN!' at the end of a mystery film. I sat back on the piano bench, completely exhausted. There was a silence and I looked to Axel who looked back at me.

And then the audience exploded in cheers.

"BRAVO!" I heard Ms. Lockhart yell from the side of the audience. I smiled at her.

I watched Axel bow and I smiled. We had done perfectly.

"_Truly magnificent, Roxas." _I looked to my right and saw Schubert again on the stage.

"Thank you." I said.

"_Your time is up now, goodbye." _I heard Schubert say and he disappeared again. I frowned but then a sudden dizziness hit me like a freight train.

The last thing I heard was the clash of notes that sounded when my face hit the piano.

Then I was out.

A/N: What is with me and these cliffhangers? I just love them so much! If you want more you better review! You guys know the drill!


	7. Chapter 7

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **We all know the truth by now… but if this thing had audio I would sing it to you.

Now that I'm in Loyola Uni's College of Fine Arts and a vocal performance major, all of this stuff makes me so much happier… everything is so much easier to picture. I hope that I can give you readers an appreciation for classical music that you may not have had before… Please review and tell me what you think! :D

I'm SO happy I make it a point to check to make sure everything is good to go before updating... I almost gave you chapter seven of a story I decided I wouldn't put on fanfiction... it was getting too weird too fast! That would have been funny though if I hadn't checked. Y'all would have been so confused!

Chapter 7

I woke up with the worst headache I had ever had. I opened my eyes and hissed at the brightness off the room.

Where the hell was I?

"OH! Doctor! Your patient is awake now, come quick!" I heard a voice say and I groaned.

How did I end up in the hospital? I tried to think and then it hit me… The Lieder Concert!

What happened at the Lieder concert? The last thing I remember is people applauding… then everything balnks out.

"Why…" I croaked before coughing and trying to sit up.

"Roxas!" I looked up to see my mother moving towards me. Why was she here?

"Mom?" I croaked again and I looked to see my mother pouring me a cup of water.

"Voilà, mon cher. Boires de l'eau." My mother urged and I took the water from her to drink.

"It's amazing, after five days in a coma, his perceptions and mobility are still highly functional." The doctor said with a smile.

I spat the water I was drinking in shock. "Five days in a coma! What about school?" I rasped in alarm looking at my mother in panic.

"Calmez-vous, mon fils. The conservatoire will take you back when you are ready. Everyone was so worried. Il y avait ce garcon, il vous ressemble… Sora, oui?" My mother asked.

"You met Sora? I'm just confused… what happened?" I asked my brain spinning in confusion.

"You collapsed from exhaustion and in the process hit your head on the piano hard enough to put you in a coma." The doctor supplied.

"Well, I'm awake now… can I please go back to school? I probably have so much work to do! Mon Dieu, qu'en est-il mes notes? Je ne veux pas être expulsé! Je veux retourner au coservatoire!" I didn't realize I was babbling in French until my mother placed a gentle hand on my shoulder.

"Roxas, I'm sure the doctors have a few more test before you can go, oui? I'm sure your teachers will give you time to catch up. Please just calm yourself… I don't want you to relapse." She said calmly in English. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"How do my peers think of me now… I just wanted to prove something to them and in the end I made a fool of myself." I said softly. My mother kissed my head.

"Regardez autour de vous! Sora and Riku brought you ces fleurs." She said and pointed to the vase of flowers by the window. "Et deux professeurs, they came to visit. One wrote you a letter, it's on the table. An American boy named Demyx… he made you a card. It's quite funny… and a litte disturbing, oui? Then there was this _German _boy, I could tell by his face… he just waltzes in without a word, places that note on the table and leaves. I will never forget his hair. C'était très rouge!" My mother said and I sat up.

"Axel was here? Where's the note? Can I please see it?" I asked looking at my mother.

She handed it to me and I thanked her before unfolding it and reading it carefully.

**As much as I'd love to complain about how you killed my spotlight with your unsightly display… I won't because you would find it to be very rude and at this point I don't want to offend you. I don't know if you feel it… but whenever I sing with you, there's a rush that I never seem to feel with anyone else's piano… at first I thought maybe it's just the songs… but that's not the case. Mr. Fair and Ms. Gainsborough were right to match us up… and I hope that we can start all over and forget all about this hostility we have going on between us. I'm sorry for being a dick… if you want to hear me say that, hurry up and get better so you can come back to school. Riku and Sora miss you…**

**The one and only,**

**Axel Sonheim**

I laughed at the note as I read it a second time. I sighed… "Okay Axel…" I said aloud before closing the note. "Can I see Dem's card?" I asked and my mother handed it to me.

I laughed at the front, which said, "DUDE, ROCK ON!" in big, red letters. I opened the card and shook my head. It said: **Roxy, you sure know how to make an exit! The song you played was so awesomely intense that you just collapsed under it's awesomeness… I wish I could be knocked out by music's intensity… sounds like an awesome way to go. Anyway, don't die, get better. I miss you in Theory… P.S. I think Mr. S misses you, he's been in a really funky mood since you've been gone.**

I burst into laughter at the beautiful illustrations of me getting my head busted open by the piano. It was quite vivid even though it looked like a five year old drew and colored it.

"I love you, Dem." I said and looked to my mom. "Is there any way you could take that home and frame it? I don't ever want to lose that card." I said.

"It is quite a masterpiece, non?" My mom smiled.

"It really is." I said.

-Cantablie-

As it turns out, in order to catch up on all of my studies. Everyone of my practice hours became study hours in Mr. S's office.

And it was really hard trying to catch up… a lot of this stuff I really had yet to learn and to try and teach it to yourself was pretty difficult.

"Where is Mr. S?" I looked up to see the conducting student from a while ago… Zexion I think.

"I don't know… I was just sent here to catch up on my studies." I said and put a hand on the white bandage that still adorned my forehead. I was not happy about that at all…

I felt like a mental person or something…

Zexion nodded and moved to the other side of the office and sat. I gave him a puzzled look before moving back to my theory homework. I didn't really like doing chord analysis exercises because they were meant to stump you… and I really don't like getting stuck.

I must have made a noise to portray my aggravation because suddenly Zexion was standing over me. "It's just a major three… it's not a secondary or tertiary chord otherwise it would have resolved to C major… The reason they made it major is so the piece could have that chromatic ascending line here…" Zexion said and pointed to the inner voicing.

I smiled. I can't believe I didn't see that… "Thanks…" I said.

"You haven't really looked at counterpoint have you? It makes more sense after you've learned about that." Zexion said.

"No… I must have missed those lectures while I was out…" I said.

"So I guess you're the one everyone is talking about…" Zexion said.

I frowned. "What are they saying?" I asked.

"Only that you fell and hit your head on the piano and went into a coma…" Zexion said.

I sighed in relief. "Well that's true actually…" I said before finishing up my work.

"You should be more careful… you could have damaged yourself beyond repair…" Zexion said.

"Yeah… I know. I seem to have a lot of luck on my side these days." I said and packed up all of my things. "I guess I'll see you around… thanks for your help." I said and left the room.

"Hey cuz! Have you eaten yet?" I turned to see Sora running to catch up to me.

"No… I just finished my catch up work for the day and I was going to eat now." I replied with a smile.

"Great! You should come eat with me, Riku, and Axel. We haven't seen you as much since you've been catching up." Sora said and took my arm before dragging me down the hall towards the student union.

It was true, I hadn't really seen Riku or Axel since the accident. I've been catching up with all my work during the times I would have seen them. I hadn't had a private lesson with Axel and Mr. Fair in almost a week.

Mr. Fair actually wrote me an apology letter stating how he had failed me as an advisor and that he should have had more faith in a student like me. He wrote that he was proud of my hard work but reprimanded me for being reckless.

It made me feel better about that crazy week.

"Hey guys! I found him! You should just go sit Rox! Lunch is on me!" Sora said with a smile and I turned to protest but he was already moving quickly down to the kitchen.

I sighed and moved over to the table. "Hi…" I said not really sure of where to sit. "Ummm…" I trailed off awkwardly and decided to sit across from Axel.

"How are you?" Riku asked.

"I'm fine… I can't wait for this frikkin bandage to come off…" I said.

"I never got a chance to tell you this, but your playing during the lieder concert was absolutely amazing. It was better than what I could have done. Good job." Riku said.

I blushed. "Thanks…" I said.

"You look so much like Sora…" Riku said.

"I really don't know why that is…" I said.

"I don't see it." Axel said.

"What? They have the same face!" Riku said. "Look here comes Sora." Riku said and got up to help his boyfriend carry the trays to the table.

Sora sat next to me and I smiled at him. "Axel seems to think we don't look alike." I said.

Sora gasped. "Axel! We're cousins!" he exclaimed.

"Well looking at you now that you're side by side it's hard to say that you don't look alike. Your eyes are definitely identical." Axel said looking at both of us.

Sora and I giggled before Riku asked Sora what he had gotten us to eat.

"Well… I kinda got a bunch of stuff. I got two things of sushi, then I got a big burger and fries, and I also got a super giant piece of pizza with that awesome garlic sauce!" Sora explained with a smile. "I figured we could share."

"Sounds good to me. Can I have a bit of everything?" I asked.

"Sure! I really want some sushi and pizza." Sora said.

"I'm good with sushi." Riku said.

"I'm digging the burger and the sushi. I had pizza yesterday." Axel said.

"Okay, Riku can have this thing of sushi, we can split this one amongst the three of us. You and Axel can split the burger and fries, and I can split the pizza with you, okay?" Sora asked.

"Sounds great." I said.

We ended up putting the soy sauce in the middle of the table so that everyone could have access to it. I was biting into my part of the burger when I noticed Sora had some rice on his face.

I snorted. "Sora, you have rice on the side of your face." I said.

Sora wiped the wrong side before Riku leaned over and licked it off. Sora blushed before he was pulled into a kiss.

I blushed and looked at Axel. He didn't seem fazed at all, which meant that they probably end up doing this all the time. I moved to continue eating when Sora let out a tiny moan, which caused me to choke on the food in my mouth.

"Oi kids, calm your hormones. Your gonna kill Frenchie here." Axel said with a chuckle.

Riku pulled away from Sora. "Sorry, he tasted like crunchy roll and I couldn't help myself."

I blushed again and Sora apologized to me with his own blush.

"You guys actually have the same blush!" Axel said.

I ignored Axel's comment and turned to Sora. "Don't worry about it, Sora. I'm just not used to public displays of affection." I explained.

"It's because he's French. The French are way too refined for my tastes." Axel said.

"Wow, great stereotype asshole. And by the way, where's your lederhosen German boy?" I snapped.

"Oho! Looks like Frenchie here needs to take a second to calm down with a cigarette and un petit croissant!" Axel countered.

"Kiss my ass, dickhead! Ton accent est effroyable!" I said slowly in French to emphasize my real accent. "Leave it to a German to make everything sound vulgar." I said.

Axel gasped. "You did not just go there. The German language is beautiful! At least German doesn't make me sound like I'm choking on popcorn!" Axel yelled.

"Haha, that's funny! Germans wouldn't know beauty if it smacked them in the face. German only sounds beautiful to other Germans because everyone's so drunk, they can't tell the difference!" I yelled back.

"I can say the same for your country! France, best known for its wines and stinky ass cheese!" Axel snapped.

"Just shut up and go eat a pretzel, fucker." I said and moved to continue eating.

Axel was about to say something before we both noticed Riku crying with laughter and Sora on the floor holding his stomach. I looked around to see the rest of the people in the student union looking on with giggles and amused faces.

"You know, our cheese really does smell like shit sometimes…" I said with a laugh.

"And now I really do want a pretzel… you wanna come with me to see if they have any?" Axel asked and stood.

I smiled. "Sure… I guess one way to resolve this is to take the time to experience each other's cultures. I'll start by eating a pretzel." I said and stood.

We moved over to the kitchen and Axel made a small 'aha!' when he spotted the soft pretzels.

"We do still have a lot of food at the table." I reminded.

"You wanna split?" Axel asked and I shrugged.

Axel grabbed a pretzel and we walked back to the table only to find that Riku and Sora had left.

"Well that's rude!" Axel huffed before sitting at the table. I sat across from him and grabbed my half of the pizza.

"So you're German but where are you from?" I asked.

"I live in Munich." Axel said. "You?" he asked.

"I'm from Montpellier. My family has lived there for a long time… it's the most beautiful city in the world." I thought about all of the wonderful things to see in my hometown and I shook away the homesickness I then felt.

"I never visited the south of France. I bet it's nice." Axel thought aloud.

"It is! It is!" I yelped in excitement. "You'll meet the nicest people and breathe the freshest air. Sometimes I wake up in the morning and wonder whether or not I'm on vacation. If there is one thing to know about the French… it's that we know how to have _great _vacations! And don't get me started on the food! It's delicious. Where I live, since were pretty close to the coast the seafood is fantastic! I don't think I've ever eaten something I didn't like at home!" I started to ramble. I didn't realize I was getting louder and louder as I spoke.

"Whoa there! Now I see why you fight with me when I bad-mouth your country. You're definitely enthusiastic about where you come form. That's some deep-rooted pride you got there." Axel said with an amused smirk.

I frowned. "You'd understand if you visited Montpellier. It's the greatest…" I trailed off. "You've been to France before though, huh? What for?" I asked when I remembered his earlier statement.

"I uhh…" He trailed off and scratched the back of his head. I was surprised to see a small flush on his face. "I was singing at the Met. I was Tamino in Die Zaubeflöte…" Axel said and I gave him a deadpan look.

"Are you kidding me? I'm actually surprised you're not bragging about this! The Metropolitan Opera House in Paris? The stage every classical singer wants to sing on? I'm not a singer and I know this for a fact! You're not lying to me are you?" I asked and grabbed the pretzel from him and took a bite.

"No I'm not lying… it's just that no matter how I say it, everyone thinks I'm boasting! And it wasn't like I was asked to sing in the opera, I had to audition and I had a lot against me. I was sixteen and nobody thought I would be ready for the role. It was only by chance that the judges didn't see my age until after they considered me for the role. But I can't tell you how glad I am that they did. I mean, singing on the Met stage was the greatest experience I had ever had and I can't wait to audition after I graduate for a permanent position." Axel said and I could practically see the big dreams he had for himself.

That was something I could respect.

"Die Zaubeflöte is Mozart, right?" I asked.

Axel's eyes widened. "Yes, but _please _tell me you've seen a Mozart opera before." He said and I gave him a puzzled look.

"I've accompanied a couple arias and played some duets and sonatas but that's about it in my Mozart rep. I've never seen an opera period. I have, however, seen quite a few recitals." I said.

Axel stood abruptly and grabbed the rest of the pretzel from me and ate it before grabbing my hand. "Come with me, right now." Axel said and pulled me out of the cafeteria.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"We're going to my dorm room so that I can book tickets to see Le Nozze di Figaro. I would have loved for you to see The Magic Flute but that was on last year's list. For any newbie wanting to join the opera scene, Mozart's opera buffa are very great for beginners. Their funny and relatively easy to understand even without supertitles." Axel said and he opened his dorm only to move straight to the computer.

"When is this opera showing?" I asked.

"In two weeks, on that Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Which one you want to go to?" he asked.

"And this is an obligation?" I asked.

"Are you really going to turn down free tickets to see an opera?" Axel asked.

I smiled. To be completely honest, I've always liked the idea of seeing an opera… but pianists aren't always involved in the opera orchestra so I tend to overlook them. I wanted to see the opera and I would have paid for a ticket on my own. But since he was offering. "No, I would like to go to the one on Friday." I said.

Axel chuckled and ordered the tickets and printed them. He handed me mine. "Don't lose it cuz I ain't buying you another one!" Axel said and I shook my head.

"I wont. Thank you." I said. Axel wasn't a bad person, and I was growing to like this starting over thing. He and I could be good friends.

"I can't believe you've never seen an opera! You don't know what music _is _until you've seen an opera!" Axel said and I laughed.

"I'll decide that on my own, after I've seen the opera." I said.

"Is that a challenge?" Axel asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, it would be a hard one to win seeing as I hold all the cards. The whole situation is based on my tastes." I said.

"You say you hold all the cards Roxy, but look at the person who is playing Susanna." Axel said.

I growled. "Don't ever call me that again." I said before looking at the cast list.

Cecilia Bartoli, I assume this was an Italian singer. To be honest, I didn't think I had ever heard her before.

"Is there something special about this singer?" I asked.

"Well, you'll see when we go to the Opera!" Axel said with a smile.

"So, you are accompanying me?" I inquired.

Axel laughed. "Of course I am! Who else is gonna show you the ropes?" he said and ruffled my hair. I growled again and swatted at his hands.

Okay, he was still annoying… but I think with time I could straighten him out.

"Hey Roxas…" Axel said.

"Yes." I answered.

"Just so you know, you have a class like…. Right now." Axel said and my eyes widened when I looked at the clock.

"You bastard! Why didn't you tell me?" I yelled.

"What? I just told you! And it's not like I' your babysitter! You better shape up Roxy, the college life is nothing like high school!" Axel said with a smirk.

I scoffed. "Please, you came to the conservatory at like sixteen, like you had any time in a real high school!" I grumbled and scowled when I heard his boisterous laughter as I left the room.

A/N: REVIEW!


	8. Chapter 8

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **Every time I have to say the words, 'I don't own the characters of Kingdom Hearts,' my soul crumbles away a little…

Chapter 8

After a week of having a stupid bandage on my head and being behind, I finally got back on track and my head is free from all healing equipment. I've pretty much gotten used to the T-Con atmosphere and all the craziness involved in living with nothing but musicians.

And believe me, that is a feet because… some of these people are _crazy._

Including everyone's favorite redhead who still annoys the fuck out of me. We've sorta warmed up to each other I guess. We can have a civilized conversation for like ten minutes before it all goes downhill from there.

I'm pretty sure it's now Riku and Sora's favorite pass time to watch Axel and I argue… but that's only when they aren't eating each other's faces off.

Sure it's a little weird that they do it in front of everyone… but they make a cute couple. They seem to always be in sync always supporting each other. I think it's actually really nice.

I only wish something like that was easy to come by. With a sigh, I walked into the cafeteria to see about getting some lunch. I was about to enter the kitchen when suddenly Sora's got me by the arm.

"Don't you worry about lunch today! Axel says it's on him!" Sora said with an excited look on his face.

My eyes widened. "Well, that's a first for me. He actually offered to do something for the benefit of others? Wow…" I said and I felt a hand smack me in the back of my head.

"Shut up Roxy! I'm a great person and you just don't want to admit it." Axel said with a smirk.

I growled. "I told you not to call me that!" I snapped.

"Okay, sweetheart!" Axel called back before entering the kitchen.

"That's even worse!" I yelped but I knew it fell on deaf ears.

"You know, I'm really glad you two are getting along. For a while I was worried that I would never get to hang with my cousin because he couldn't get along with my friends. It makes me really happy that we can all be together." Sora said with a smile as we moved back to our table.

"Hey Riku." I said before really thinking about what Sora said. If you could really call mine and Axel's behavior towards each other really getting along, it was kind of nice to feel like I had a group of friends that were there for me.

Well… I don't know about Axel being there for me but, hey, he said he would show me what the opera scene was like. He said he would show me the ropes and give me the best first opera experience possible. In a way, that's kind of being there for me I guess.

When we finished lunch I had to get to class. Sora and Riku said their goodbyes as I stood and threw away he empty food containers on the table. I was about to leave the cafeteria when Axel grabbed my arm.

"I have to tell you for the opera you have to dress nicely. It's a courtesy and I won't be caught dead sitting next to anyone who doesn't look good. So you better learn to strut it, sweetheart." Axel said and I moved to hit him but he evaded my flying hand.

"My name is Roxas! And don't worry, I wouldn't go to a live performance in a classical setting without a suit and tie." I said and huffed before moving down the hallway.

"I'll be looking forward to it. Don't forget to brush down that atrocious bed head look you've got going on." Axel said and I scoffed.

"Don't forget to file down those atrocious stalagmites you've got growing at the back of your head. Seriously, whose hair does that? And what possessed you to dye it that flamingly obnoxious color?" I asked.

"Ouch, Roxy. You always go in for the kill. And please sweetheart, I'm one of a kind with all natural red hair. I'd be happy to confirm it for you, let you take a look under the hood, if you know what I mean." Axel said and waggled his eyebrows.

"Oh! GOD! No! I'll take your word for it! Goodbye!" I cringed before running off to my class.

"You only wish you could handle this!" Axel yelled from up the hallway.

"SHUT UP!" I cried trying to erase the god-awful image that flew into my head suddenly.

-Cantabile-

When I got back to the dorms, I moved to my room and pulled out my suit and found a bright red bow tie and vest. I always liked the black and red combinations.

And it would be kinda cool to match Axel's hair. I wonder if he's wearing red…

I shook my head to erase my thoughts. Why would I care about what he was wearing? And who cares if we don't match, it's not like this is a date or anything.

Date?

Oh God! Stop it Roxas! Why am I letting my mind wander like that? It's not healthy!

"Looks like someone's got a big date coming up, huh?" I jumped when I heard a female voice behind me and I turned to see Naminé smiling at me.

"No! I just have to wear something nice for a performance on Friday." I said.

She snorted. "Nobody organizes an outfit a day and a half before an event unless they're trying to impress. So who is it that has caught your eye, Roxy?" Naminé asked with a smirk.

I shook my head. "It's not like that. It's my first opera and I wanted to look nice for it." I said.

"You're a bad liar." She said with a giggle.

"I'm not lying, really it's just for the opera." I said feeling nervous suddenly. I felt as if I was caught red handed doing something I shouldn't have.

Why do I feel that way?

"And you're going to this opera alone?" Naminé asked with an even wider smirk.

I blushed brightly before shaking my head. "Yes, I'm going alone." I lied.

"Like I said Roxas, you're a terrible liar. Seriously who are you going with that's got you all flushed and finicky. I always thought you were one of those fiery types, you know. The one's that are always prepared to defend and refute without a second thought. Who would of thought you could be such a nervous type too. Because being a fighter does come with a certain bold courage. To see you like this is kinda funny." She paused and jumped as if pulling herself out of a trance. "Oh! Sorry, I was rambling." She said.

"I'm not finicky…" I mumbled as I hung up the clothing before turning to see Naminé smiling again.

"It's not a bad thing, you know, to like someone. I mean this person's got to like you at least a little bit to accompany you to your first opera experience. I wish someone had done that for me. Though I enjoyed the opera, it's not the same unless you have someone to share the moment with you. They can be pretty magical, operas I mean." Naminé said before leaving the room.

I sighed and rubbed my temples to fend off the oncoming headache. There was no way I could like someone like Axel. He was too much. I looked up to my outfit and frowned. The only reason I got ready this early is because Axel said that I had to dress…

Because _Axel _said…

I growled and pulled at my hair. There was no way this was happening. I totally was not going to fall for that. Axel's too much of a buttface.

Yes… I said it… a buttface. That's really the only way to describe his attitude towards me.

And plus all we do is argue, nothing good would come out of a relationship like that.

Now I'm thinking about relationships Oh No! This has got to stop. I ran out of the room and moved downstairs to look for Demyx, that kid could always get my mind off of things.

I knocked on the door and smiled when Demyx answered. "Hey man! What's up?" he asked.

"Since you're the funnest to be around, I was hoping you could give me a distraction." I said and smiled.

Demyx grinned. "Distraction? Hell yeah! Hey guys, my friend Roxas needs a distraction! Someone find the Jäger and Jack! I've been kinda looking for an excuse to get wasted so let's go! I'm pretty sure there's some Heineken in the fridge! Oh, and I guess I have to go over the rules…" Demyx said.

"The rules?" I didn't know there were rules to getting wasted.

"If you decide to get wasted, you can't leave the room except for an emergency… the last thing we need is the RA breathing down our necks. Second, what ever happens in this room, stays in this room, got it! I don't want any drama. And thirdly, have fun! Whoo! Let's go!" Demyx said and opened the bottle of Tennessee whisky and took a large chug.

"You don't seem like much of a drinker, dude." I turned to see a guy with long pink hair.

I smiled. "I'm not, but if the situation calls for it…" I said.

"And the situation?" The pink haired male inquired.

"Doesn't matter because I'm about to forget it. Will you do me the honors of giving me my first drink?" I asked with a laugh.

"Sure thing, man. Xig, do you have anything easy for him? He's a first timer." A guy with an eye patch looked up and smiled.

"I love alcohol virgins. So easily corruptible." He said and pulled out a pitcher.

"What's that?" I asked.

"Fruit punch." Xig said with a laugh.

I shrugged, "okay." I said and drank it down.

"Oh! Look at him go! Demyx, you got us a keeper!" Xig said with a laugh.

"What's your name?" the pink-haired boy asked.

"Roxas, you?" I asked.

"Marluxia, but call me Marley. That's Xigbar… he's actually a grad student so he can legally buy and drink. Lucky us, huh?" Marley said and I nodded.

"Though, I'm surprised, this doesn't taste spiked at all. I figured I'd be able to taste something." I said.

"That's because I don't buy cheap booze." Xigbar said with a chuckle.

"Dem, put on some music. A party ain't a party until the lights go off and the music goes on!" Marley said and Demyx laughed.

"I'm working on it!" Demyx said.

"So, Xigbar is a grad student, what does he do?" I asked.

"Well, in graduate school you can go into other branches involved in the music industry. Believe it or not, I'm studying to be an opera director." Xigbar said with pride while he poured himself a drink.

Suddenly music blasted through the room and Demyx let out a triumphant sound. "Greatest thing about music school dorms, soundproof." Demyx said before moving over to me.

"What's this?" he asked and took the drink out of my hand and chugged. "Oh god! Get him something stronger than this! Dude needs a distraction, not a glass of Kool-aid!" Dem said with a scoff.

"Well excuse us for trying our hardest not to have Roxas' puke his stomach out from the sudden influx of pure alcohol. Have you eaten?" Marley asked.

"Yeah. But I'll take the next level! I wanna chill with the big boys." I said and Marley smirked.

"Okay then, is there anything else you would like on this fine evening?" he asked wrapping an arm around my waist.

Demyx and Xigbar laughed. "Looks like someone's already staking their claim on the fresh meat, okay then." They said and I smirked.

"I don't know about me being fresh meat, but I'll take whatever you'd like to give." I said and looked him in the eyes.

"Just so you know, I'm taking this as a blatant invitation to get you drunk." Marley said, serious for a second.

I smiled, to be honest, I liked the attention I was getting and I certainly couldn't call the guy in front of me unattractive. "I've never done this before, but I know when I like what I see. And I _do _like what I see." I said.

This conservatory had made me so stressed and completely insane really. I was more than ready to just unwind. And plus this was all part of college life, getting wasted and not remembering what happened the night before. And if I wanted to get drunk with anyone, I wanted it to be with Demyx.

Though he may be a party animal. He was a relatively responsible one. And if I was in trouble, he wouldn't let it slide.

"Shit, I gotta get you a drink." Marley said and took my hand to bring me over to the fridge. He pulled out a bottle of vodka and some cranberry juice. "You are going to taste the booze in this, just so you know." Marley said.

"Hit me!" I said and Marley laughed as he mixed the drink and handed it to me.

"I have to say… you are quite the catch." He said.

"It's only been like ten minutes in." I said.

"Yeah, that's why I'm fired up for the following hours." Marley said and I took a swig of the drink. I winced as it burned my throat. I took another sip.

"I like this one." I said and continued to drink. Marley chuckled and pulled me over to Xigbar and Demyx who were playing cards on the table.

"What are we playing?" Marley asked.

"Well, now that you're here, we can play Bullshit cause I'm not playing poker with you cheaters." Demyx said and I laughed.

"Lost all your funds, Dem?" I asked and sank to the floor with Marley, who pulled me between his legs.

"Yeah, so I'm not risking it again. So you're just gonna have to settle for Bullshit." Demyx said.

"Well, it's all good because I have a lucky charm." Marley said and looked at me. I smiled.

"I guess I'll have to live up to my title." I said.

The cards were dealt and the game began. I watched with interest as I continued to drink whatever was given to me.

"Two fours." Demyx said and Marley hummed. "What do you think, babe? Should I?" he asked.

I looked at Marley's hand to see that he also had two fours. I looked at Demyx. A thing about being a collaborative pianist is that you have to learn to read people and their body language. I smiled at Demyx.

He had a great poker face, but his shoulder tension gave him away. "Call it." I said.

"Bullshit, Demyx." Marley said.

"And is it a bluff?" Xig asked.

"FUCK! Roxas!" Demyx said as he took the deck in the middle. I laughed and apologized with a sheepish look.

"How did you figure it out?" Xigbar asked.

"He had shoulder tension and that's very uncommon for someone as laid back as Demyx. Sorry, your body gave it away, not necessarily your face." I said.

Needless to say, I helped Marley win the game. Marley stood and pulled me into a hug. "You are proving to be quite perfect." He said into my ear.

I shivered and smiled. "Another drink?" I asked.

"Yeah, and then we should dance." Marley said.

"But there are only four people here." I said.

"Yeah, I know, it makes it better because I can hog you all to myself." Marley said. I shook my head.

The music was certainly waiting to be danced to and why should I care about that fact that no one else was dancing. Marley handed me a drink and I downed it in one go. "Okay, let's dance!" I said and took Marley's hand.

I liked the song playing, the bass was low and the beat was steady. I began to dance to the beat and laughed when Marley started to dance with me. I danced around him and almost jumped when Marley pulled me to him and let his hands slide under my shirt. I felt my face flush and a pulled away from him.

It wasn't that I didn't want him touching me, but I wanted to be in control. I moved over to him and placed my hands on his chest and danced downward before moving back up. I moved around him again only this time closer and trailing a teasing hand with me. When I moved back in front of him, I decided I wanted him to grab be again so I waited.

Marley moved behind me and took my hips. I leaned back against him and I smirked when we began to grind on each other. After a while, the rest of the room began to fade out.

I could only hear the music and the sound of my heavy breathing from dancing.

I could only feel Marluxia's hot hands begin to slip under my shirt again. I leaned back into him a little more and he and I moved to the beat of the music. I sighed when I felt Marley begin to kiss up my neck. I shivered a little before turning to face him and connecting our lips.

His hands began to move again and I moaned softly at the feeling of his fingers tracing up my back.

"God, you're so fucking hot." Marluxia said between our kiss and my awareness came back a little.

"Thanks." I replied and continued my kiss. I giggled a little when he swirled his tongue around mine.

"Wow, right on Roxas!" I heard Demyx cheer and I smirked into our kiss.

Marluxia pulled me to the couch and laid me down. I wrapped my arms around his neck and ran my fingers through his hair. He moaned and moved his kisses back down to my neck.

I let out a sharp moan when he bit my neck.

"You like that, sweetheart?" he asked and I froze. He must have noticed because he sat up.

"I said the wrong thing, didn't I?" he asked.

I sighed and covered my face. "Yeah… yeah you did. I'm sorry, Marley." I said.

"Nah, it's my fault for opening my big mouth. I'm sorry I reminded you about what you were trying to forget." Marley said and Xigbar groaned.

"This is depressing! Let's just get completely plastered." Xigbar said.

Marley and I smiled at each other before looking to Demyx. "Fuck yeah!"

-Cantabile-

I woke up to a screaming alarm and I immediately covered my ears to fend off the throbbing headache. "Someone turn that shit off!" I yelped.

The sound of someone slamming the alarm off came before silence. I opened my eyes and sat up to see that I was sleeping with Demyx on a bed. I looked around.

This must have been one to the larger bedrooms. Demyx sat up and smiled. "Mornin' buddy. When is your first class?" he asked.

"Fuckin' 8:30…" I said and got up. I needed to go back to my dorm room and get ready. I hugged Demyx and told him I would see him in theory later.

I moved out of the room and was about to leave when I felt someone grab my hand. I turned to see Marley.

"Since everything between us is over once you leave the room…" he said before pulling me into a kiss.

I returned the kiss for a minute before pulling away. "It was nice meeting you." I said.

"Yeah, and if you ever need someone to make out with… you know where I live." He said with a smile.

I chuckled softly. "Good to know. " I said and went back to my dorm room.

A/N: If you all review you'll get more! PRESS THE BUTTON!


	9. Chapter 9

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **I.D.O (three guesses to what that stands for)

_I know a lot of you are probably like, WHAT THE FUCK ROXAS! WHAT ARE YOU DOING? So I decided I would quickly type this chapter up so that people won't have seizures or mental freak outs._

__The sentence above in Italics is a sentence I wrote before I read any of your reactions to the previous chapter. Surprisingly, most of you guys weren't freaking out at all, which is great! In fact, most of you were just like MarluxiaxRoxas? What is this? It's interesting when I think I know what y'all are thinking but in reality I can never tell. Thanks for the reviews everyone and here's probably one of the last few chapters I'll update before I start school again.

Chapter 9

Ohhhhh, my head still hurts and it's already lunch time.

"Roxas, come on! It's time to get some grub." Sora said happily and I winced at the bright tone.

"Sora… I'm not really feeling that good. I need to go take a nap. My head hurts from all that drinking…" I trailed.

"You were drinking? Where? I'm pretty sure that's illegal." Sora said with a suspicious look.

I sighed. "Yes it is illegal, but getting wasted seemed like such a great idea then…" I said and moved towards the dorms.

"I'll have lunch with you guys tomorrow, okay?" I said.

"Roxas… drinking like that is dangerous! What possessed you to drink so much?" Sora asked.

I sighed. "I wanted to forget something… which in the end, I only forgot for a few hours and then I passed out and then when I woke up it eventually came back… oh well. I mean from what I remember, I did have a pretty awesome time." I said.

"Roxas… I don't think I like this." Sora said with a pout.

"Don't worry cuz, I wasn't too irresponsible. And I'm not going to make something like that a habit. I promise, I just had a problem I wanted out of my head." I said.

"Well, it's better to just tell somebody about it instead of drink it away!" Sora said and took my head. "I'm here for you, cousin… So is Riku and Axel…" Sora finished and I felt my heart sink with guilt.

"Sora, I didn't mean to worry you. I'm okay now, I promise. And I'm sorry I didn't come to you when I could have. I'm sorry." I said and pulled my friend into a hug.

Sora hugged me back and sighed. "As long as you're okay. And if you're really going to go drinking again, bring at least one of us with you. You know, to have your back?" Sora said.

"Sure thing, and I think Dem might actually like that." I said and waved goodbye before heading back to the dorm to take a nap.

I made the trek up the stairs and entered my room. I flopped onto the bed and was about to drift into dreamland when my door opened.

"Are you okay, Roxy? Sora said you weren't feeling well. Since I'm such a nice person, I decided to check up on you." I heard Axel's voice from the doorway.

I closed my eyes in shame. Even his speaking voice was soothing… I wished then that he could just sit and talk quietly to me, to send me off into pleasant sleep.

"I'm fine… I just have a really bad headache and I want to try and sleep it off." I said.

"You _sure _you're okay?" he asked and I nodded.

"Yeah… umm, thanks… you know, for checking on me…" I said.

"Wow, you actually thanked me for something. You must really have a head ache." He said with a small chuckle.

I let out a small laugh. "Yeah… I'll admit that you're a nice person when the situation calls for it. I'm glad we don't fight so seriously anymore…" I said releasing some of the feelings in my heart a little, knowing that I could blame it on the headache if he ever brought it up.

"I'm glad you think that. Well Roxy, I'll see you at our lesson tomorrow and then at the opera. You better be excited about that because, let me tell you… it is gonna blow your mind!" Axel said with a quietly excited voice.

He was actually being considerate of my headache.

It wasn't fair. Why was it that I cared for someone like him? I mean… I feel like he and I are on different levels.

But he and I were going to see an opera together and maybe that can help me bridge our gap a little.

I watched him leave and allowed myself to finally go to sleep.

-Cantabile-

After my nap during lunch, I felt a little bit better and it was much easier to get through my classes.

I felt bad for poor Demyx who fell asleep in Theory. He almost got kicked out but I managed to keep him awake long enough to get by during that hour.

I felt much better Friday morning and I was excited for my dat- _outing_ with Axel.

I sighed and got ready for classes; I ate breakfast and moved on to Piano studies. Ms. Lockhart was so impressed with my performance that day, even though I passed out, that she always pushes me to do even better and that makes me really happy.

I was now working on a couple of pieces, one being a Donaudy piece and a Puccini aria called "Recodita armonia…" I guess you could say they're not really my pieces seeing as Axel is the one that sings them.

"Roxas, you know Axel is going easy on you right by giving you these pieces." Mr. Lockhart said with a smile.

I gave her a puzzled look. "Going easy? What do you mean?" I asked.

"Both of these pieces have a bit of rubato and it's very easy to string the passion along. He gave you pieces that are not that hard on the fingers and feed your desire to get swept away." She said.

"But isn't it my job not to get swept away… isn't he providing me with the challenge?" I asked.

"I guess you could look at it that way, but personally I think you need to continue with faster rep. And the Donaudy feeds off of the connection between singer and piano so in that case, it's almost perfectly acceptable to let yourself go." She said and I smiled.

"Either way, they're going to be better than what anyone expects of me! I'm promise!" I said.

"That's the right attitude. But now it's time for someone else. I smiled when Rinoa stood and moved to play.

I walked into the room for my 'private lesson' and smiled at Axel. "Hey, is Mr. Fair here yet?" I asked.

"He stepped out but he said he would come back in like ten minutes. Evidently, it was a call he couldn't take a message for." Axel asked.

"Well, do you want to get started on something?" I asked.

"I would love to work on that Puccini piece. It sits so awkwardly in my voice. Ms. Gainsborough says sometimes I get under the pitch. And for me to be under the pitch is like, the population going without food!" He said dramatically and I laughed.

"I'm sure it's not that bad. Why don't we start it and see how it goes."

Axel nodded and got himself situated before lifting his head to become a painter named Cavaradossi. I smiled before beginning my ascending line.

I started slowly, letting the very Puccini-esque line for my right hand tickle down. I smiled at the feeling the combination of the two gave me. I looked over to Axel who seemed to be feeling the same thing I was.

The music mirroring the completely blissful love the painter felt for his beloved Tosca. I watched as he opened his mouth to sing.

_"Recondita armonia di bellezze diverse! È bruna Floria, l'ardente amante mia…"_ I sighed quietly at the sound of his voice. I let my hands glide over the piano into the billowing chords that rolled through the air.

_"E te, beltade ignota cinta di chiome bionde! Tu azzurc hai l'occhio Tosca ha l'occhio nero!"_ I felt myself drift away in my thoughts of him, about his voice, the ways his eyes shined when he sang. The hidden kindness he seemed to have for those worthy of it. "_L'arte nel suo mistero le diverse bellezze insiem confonde:"_

I began the beginning theme again as Axel became more passionate. I could feel him building, his voice crescendoing into the climax. It was as if he was really thinking about a lover, one that he just couldn't stop thinking about. I felt my chest clench at my thoughts but my body relax at the sound of his tantalizing voice.

I supported him as he continued the line, I lifted him up but hoped that he would remember to keep himself grounded. "_ma nel ritrar costei il mio solo pensiero, ah! il mio sol pensier sei tu! Tosca sei tu_!" We ended together and I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding.

But I realized something else as I played with him… all of my thinking about him as he sang, as I played. This song mirrored everything I was feeling. The only thing I think about nowadays is Axel. Axel singing, Axel laughing, Axel whispering sweet nothings in my ear! I liked him so much it was crazy!

_I _was Axel's Cavaradossi and _he _was my Tosca…

I took my hands to my head and let out an exasperated breath. This was coming at me way too fast. I could feel a headache coming back to me. "Shit…" I said quietly under my breath.

"Hey, Roxas are you okay?" Axel moved over to me and placed a hand on my shoulder.

"Y-yeah, just a headache." I said and let my aching head loll to the side.

"You still have a heada-…" Axel trailed off and I turned to him.

"What?" I asked.

Axel shook his head and looked at me. "You still have a the headache from yesterday? What did you do?" Axel asked.

I shook my head and let out a small laugh. "I got really drunk." I answered.

"Oh, okay." Axel said and I couldn't help but sense a tiny bit of hostility in his tone. I shook my head. I'm sure it was nothing.

"Well, I didn't hear you go under the pitch that time. It was great." I said with a smile.

"Yeah, thanks." He said shortly and I shrugged it off.

The rest of the lesson went okay. Axel and I weren't really clicking as easily as we usually do and I figured it was just because I was feeling perturbed and Axel said something about his voice not really being 'on it' today.

When I went to lunch I learned that Axel must have been feeling vocally tired because, evidently, Ms. Gainsborough had asked him to go on vocal rest. So he wasn't at lunch.

I hoped he was okay…

"Hey, Roxas… I've been meaning to ask you… but I figured it would be kind of awkward…" Sora started.

I gave him a puzzled look. "What's up, cousin?" I asked.

"When you went drinking, no one took advantage of you right? I mean, you've had that nasty bite mark on your neck for like two days now…" Sora trailed off and my eyes widened.

"No! I mean, no, no one to advantage of me… I didn't think the dude bit me that hard. I've had a mark this whole time?" I asked and stood to head to a bathroom mirror.

"Yeah… I'm the only one that noticed though… it's kind of placed where you can't see it unless your head is turned to the side." He said.

"I didn't notice it until Sora pointed it out. But if you're okay then everything is fine." Riku said.

"Yeah… _I _didn't even notice it… it doesn't hurt and I never pay attention enough when I look in the mirror." I said. "But yeah, I think you guys can kind of figure out what went down. But I'm totally fine, no traumatic experiences whatsoever." I said.

"Sometimes I worry about you, cousin." Sora said and turned to Riku who wrapped and arm around his boyfriend. "Just be careful, for Sora's sake" Riku added.

I laughed. "I promise, this was a one time thing. But thanks for the concern Mom and Dad." I said with a smile.

"Momma knows best, Roxas!" Sora joked back.

I shook my head and sat back down. I didn't really care all that much about the mark anyway.

-Cantabile-

When classes were over and my homework was done I smiled when I looked at the clock.

I had an hour and a half. I moved to the shower and took my time in getting nice and clean. When that was done I put on my nice clothes and stood in front to the mirror to make sure everything was in order.

I smiled at my reflection. I looked pretty good if I had to say so myself. I sighed when I looked at my hair.

How was I gonna fix this?

I combed and combed but the spikes wouldn't stay down.

"This is when you use hair gel." I jumped when I noticed Naminé behind me. "May I?" she asked.

I nodded and handed her the comb and watched as she put gel in my hair before coming down my unruly perpetual bed-head.

I was completely surprised when it actually worked! I smiled and hugged Naminé tightly before grabbing all my stuff to get ready to go.

"Are you sure this isn't a date?" she asked.

"No, it's not a date! It's my first opera experience! It's either go all out or go home." I said with a smile.

"Mmhmm." She hummed disbelievingly before smiling. "Have a great time Roxas." She said.

"I will!" I replied before leaving the dorm building and heading towards the right subway entrance.

Axel said I had to take the red line all the way to Twilight Center where the opera house was. I laughed… was everything in this city named after Twilight?

I purchased the ticket and got onto the subway. I smiled when I saw a few other people dressed in nice clothing. I wondered if maybe they were going to the same place I was.

When I got off the train and moved up the stairs back into the city. I smiled at all the lively night activity. Everything was so grand, but it was all fresh and new. It was nothing the historical buildings and atmosphere I had back home.

When I reached the opera house I felt my heart warm at the thought of all of these people coming together to see something so beautiful. I checked my watch and sighed when I realized I was fifteen minutes early.

Axel said to wait for him on the bench by a streetlight. I looked around and when I spotted it I moved over and sat.

I pulled out my ticket and sighed. I couldn't wait to see this opera. Mozart had to be one of the greatest composers to ever exist. It was such an honor to be able to see such a masterpiece on the stage.

I looked up information on Le Nozze di Figaro, because I was so excited about it, and it turns out the story is actually from a play. A trilogy of plays and this is the second one. Rossini based his opera the Baber of Seville off of the first play. No one has done the third play… but that's because it's sad.

When I read about the ending of the third play I was very upset. Mozart made everything end so perfectly and in the play everything falls to pieces. Too much death and deceit for me.

I wonder what roll Axel would sing if he was in this opera. I mean, with his voice he could probably sing just about every role. It's kind of unfair for him to be so talented! But I think I would have liked to hear him as Figaro. Their characters are similar in that they both enjoy a bit of mischief at their superior's expense. Axel is forever getting on someone's nerves. Especially Mr. S. It's quite funny!

I watched as people started to enter the building and I looked at my watch. Things were settling down and the opera was going to start soon.

I shook my head and leaned back in the bench. Leave it to Axel to be fashionably late.

I began to worry when it was an hour after the time the opera was supposed to start. I didn't think about brining my phone and it's not like I had Axel's number anyway. What could have happened to him?

I mean, this was WAY later than being fashionably late. He said he would be here… what if he got mugged or something on the way here? What if… what if…

I couldn't stop my panicked mind from thinking up all of the terrible things that must have happened to keep him away. I stood and moved to walk around to see if I could find him in an alley somewhere or on the street. I jumped when thunder rolled and I looked up to see the rain begin to fall down onto my face.

My worry only increased after that moment. Axel could be out there, in the rain… bleeding somewhere! After walking around for a while I managed to calm down enough to go back to the bench and sit.

I let out a sneeze and curled into myself… I was cold and wet and I wasn't sure what to do.

Before I knew it, people were leaving the theatre and I sighed.

I had missed all of the opera and waited outside in the rain for Axel… I really do hope he's okay and that nothing happened to him on his way here.

There was a sinking feeling in my heart when I realized… Axel could have very well just left me here to wait and had never planned on coming. I shook that thought out of my head as soon as it came to mind. Axel wasn't that kind of person.

I sighed. Who was I kidding? I didn't really _know _anyone here. Not even Sora or Riku… I bit my lip and tried to push aside the betrayal I felt.

I had no right to feel betrayed anyway. It wasn't like he promised he would come…

"Roxas?" I looked up to see Sora and Riku coming out of the theatre. "Roxas!" Sora quickly ran over to me. "Oh my gosh, are you okay? What happened?" I just looked at him, not really knowing what to say.

Sora took my hand. "Jesus, you're freezing! And look at you, you're soaked!" Sora exclaimed before he took off his jacket and placed it over my shivering body.

"What happened, Roxas?" Riku asked and I bit my lip. I couldn't help it when tears came to my eyes.

"I-I d-don't know what happened… Axel said h-he would come w-ith me to see the opera… h-he told m-me to wait… but he never came! I-I'm worried something m-might have happened to him! I w-waited and waited and i-it started raining b-but he n-never showed up…" I cried softly, wiping my eyes gently.

Sora gave Riku a look and Riku growled.

"Wh-what?" I asked as I continued to shiver. Sora took my hands and started rubbing them to help me warm up.

"I got a text from Axel asking me if I wanted to go to a party with him tonight. I declined because I had a date with Sora. You said he was going to come with you?" Riku asked.

"Yeah, he bought my ticket and everything…" I said feeling my heart tear a little at the news.

"Fucking bastard! I'll kick his ass!" Riku said and Sora grabbed his arm.

"Riku… calm down…" Sora said.

"Sora, you know you're pissed too! Look at him, babe! He waited two and a half hours _in the rain_ for that dickhead and he blatantly stood him up! I just… I don't understand why he would do that! He's not that kind of person… well at least that's what I fuckin' thought!" Riku yelled.

"I know, Riku! But yelling isn't going to change anything. I just want to get Roxas back to the dorm with a nice cup of tea." Sora said and pulled my shaking form into a hug.

I hugged him back before standing… "I w-want to go back to the dorms…" I said.

Sora smiled at me and took my hand. "If it's any consolation, Rox, you look really cute!"

I gave him a small smile before we headed back to the dorms.

A/N: Haha! Now review and tell me how pissed off you are at Axel!


	10. Chapter 10

**Cantablie**

**Disclaimer: **I own the plot… that is all…

Nana… if you are reading this… I just want to say that I wish you had a real penname on fanfiction so that I can properly reply to your reviews. I laughed out loud at my computer when I read your last review. I had never had someone write "YOU HOE!" in a review. I just about died laughing because I call my friends hoes sometimes (the garden tool of course!) :D

Enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 10

When I got back to my dorm room, I jumped when Sora started taking off my clothes.

"S-sora!" I squeaked.

"Roxas, you have to get out of these clothes. It was like 40 degrees outside and you've been sitting in the rain for a long time. You could catch pneumonia. Baby, can you get the blanket out of my room, please?" Sora asked his boyfriend.

"Roxas are you okay? How was the opera?" Naminé asked and I shook my head at her.

"Rox…" she trailed off and pulled me into a hug. "You're freezing…" she said with a small giggle.

I smiled at her. Naminé was a good friend. "I got rained on." I said before continuing to take off my clothes.

"I'm going to get you a change of clothes." Sora said.

"Thanks. I need to go to the bathroom and change, my boxers are soaked as well." I said and when Sora handed me my clothes I walked into the bathroom and changed.

I opened the bathroom door to a hot-pink fuzzy blanket with a crown on it that said 'princess' in swirly letters.

I let out a laugh but flinched when a couple of tears slid down my face. "Sora… where did you get this? Justice?" I asked as I quickly wiped my eyes and took the blanket.

"How did you know?" Sora asked.

"I have a little cousin who's obsessed with that store." I said and sighed when Riku threw the blanket over my head.

It was Riku's turn to sigh. "What are we going to do with him?" Riku asked and I looked out from under the blanket to see Riku turned to Sora.

"I'm talking to him tomorrow about this. I can't let this slide. I'm confused as to why he would do such a thing. I mean, this isn't just lying… he gave Roxas a false sense of friendship and then just… Riku…" Sora said and Riku wrapped his arms around him.

"Roxas… did that really happen? That person stood you up?" Naminé asked.

I kinda wished people would stop looking at me like I'm some defenseless animal… but they were really worried about me. I could see the sincerity in their eyes. And for some reason, that only continued to bring tears to my eyes.

"Y-yeah… I didn't think it would hurt this much." I said with a sad laugh as I wiped my eyes again.

"Roxas… this person needs to smacked… I'm just saying." Naminé said and I laughed again.

I let out another sneeze and was about to reply when I suddenly felt something warm touch the side of my face. I turned to see someone handing me a cup of tea. My eyes widened when I saw Leon looking down at me.

I took the cup from his hands and thanked him before I felt a hand through my hair. "Sorry, kid." He said before heading back to his room. I smiled softly.

"You guys are so kind…" I whispered softly.

"That's what friends are for, honey." Naminé said and placed a kiss on my cheek before standing. "Goodnight Rox, I would stay with you longer, but I really should go to bed. I have an early start tomorrow." She said and I nodded.

"Thanks." I said.

"No prob, hun." She said and I looked over to Sora. "Thank you so much guys." I said and Riku waved it off.

"We just want you to be okay… you're like family to us now, right Sora?" Riku smiled at his boyfriend.

"Damn straight! Now off to bed with you Roxas, you know Mommy and Daddy don't like it when you stay up late." Sora said in a strange falsetto.

I snorted and stood. "Can I hold onto this?" I asked gesturing to the blanket.

"Yeah, I'm gonna go back to Justice and buy the purple one just for you!" Sora said and I couldn't stop one last tear from falling down my face.

"I love you, cousin." I said.

Suddenly Sora's face teared up and he launched himself at me, "I love you more, cousin!" Sora gushed hugging me tightly.

"Okay, I'm gonna go to bed now." I said and rubbed Sora's back a little before letting go and heading to bed.

-Cantabile-

I woke to Sora shaking my shoulder. I yawned and rubbed my eyes. "Is something wrong?" I asked before twisting my back to get the cracks out.

"Come with me." Sora said and he pulled me out of bed. I stumbled a little before catching up to Sora's pace.

"Where's the fire?" I asked as he pulled me down the stairs and over into the student union. I smiled at Riku when I saw him at the door. "Good morning… are we having breakfast together? I don't see why there's so much rush. Sora didn't even let me put on my shoes. Which my feet are _freezing_ by the way." I said sending Sora a pointed look.

"Take him." Sora said and pulled me over to Riku. I frowned at Sora and watched as he walked into the cafeteria. Riku and I followed after him.

He was moving so quickly I wasn't sure what was going on until I saw who Sora was gunning for.

"W-wait! Sora! Do-" I couldn't stop him as he suddenly pulled Axel from his chair and punched him in the face.

"I hope that hangover stays for days, you asshole!" Sora yelled and I pulled out of Riku's grip to grab Sora before he did something he would regret.

"Sora, what is your problem? What the fuck!" Axel yelled angrily as he got up.

He looked at me. "Good morning, sweetheart." He said.

I felt my heart wrench at the words but I was forced back into reality when I had to hold Sora back from mauling the redhead.

"Don't you fucking act like everything is fucking normal you fucking fuck!" Sora yelled and Riku took the volatile brunette from me and held onto him. "Sora, that's too much." Riku said.

"I don't care!" Sora ripped himself out of Riku's hold and launched himself at Axel who fell to the floor. "Where were you last night?" Sora yelled.

"At a Lex's party in his apartment!" Axel yelled back.

"Where were you _supposed _to be last night?" Sora yelled shaking Axel a little.

"Don't you dare try and fucking lecture me Sora! I had no obligations!" Axel yelled and pushed Sora off of him.

"Bullshit! Axel, you said you would take Roxas to the opera!" Riku suddenly started yelling.

"So what! I bailed, okay?" Axel grumbled and stood before dusting himself off.

"He waited for you for the _entire opera!"_ Sora snapped.

"And?" Axel said.

"Guys…" I tried to interrupt.

"AND he waited in the freezing rain and was actually worried that you had gotten hurt!" Riku yelled.

"I didn't make him do that!" Axel said.

"Guys…" I said a little louder.

"You stupid jerk! When did you become so-"

"GUYS!" I yelled and the entire cafeteria was quiet. I sighed when I realized I had a rather large audience. "I know you didn't _make _me wait for you, but you asked me to wait at the bench so I did and I expected you to be there. When you made plans with me, you gave me the impression that you would show up…" I said calmly.

"Please Roxas! Stop acting like a fucking baby! I wasn't obligated to go anywhere with you, it's not like it was a _date! _I'm not your fucking boyfriend, Roxas." Axel snapped and I fell silent for a second.

His words cut me like knives and I had to take a moment to stop myself from tearing up. I took a breath and looked to Riku and Sora who looked shocked at the malice in his voice.

"I didn't say anything about you being my boyfriend, Axel… I j-just… I regret trusting you… I was looking forward to watching that opera with you… I'm glad that you weren't hurt and that you had just decided not to come… and I'm really sorry that those tickets went to waste…" I said quietly before turning and heading back to my dorm room.

"Axel you are going to fix this! I'm not speaking to you until you do!" I heard Sora yelp.

I heard Axel growl. "Get your ass back here Roxas! You can't fucking say all that shit to make me feel guilty and then just walk away! That's not fair!" Axel yelled and I just shook my head before leaving the union. I was about to open the door to the stairwell when someone roughly grabbed my wrist and turned me around.

"You know, it's not very fair to pretend to be friends with someone and then abandon them suddenly." I said and looked him in the eyes. I wouldn't let him see how torn up I was about this.

"Don't be so fucking melodramatic! You could have just asked your fucking boyfriend to go with you!" Axel yelled and I frowned.

"I don't have a boyfriend, Axel!" I yelped.

"Then what the _fuck _is that on your neck? Do you make it a habit of getting drunk and fucking complete strangers?" Axel growled.

My jaw hit the floor. "_I would never fucking do that Axel and it's none of your business what I do with my free time!" _I raged at him. I'm pretty sure the people back in the cafeteria could hear me. "If you wanted to know what happened then you should have asked! That's what Sora and Riku did! Because they are my friends! _You _just assumed that I'm some drunk that sleeps around! And even if I did, I'm not _your _fucking boyfriend Axel so you have no right to be mad!" I screamed before turning my back to him and opening the stairwell door to leave.

I yelped when I felt myself getting slammed into the door and I was about to yell at Axel when he suddenly crashed his lips against mine. My eyes widened when I felt him press closer to me and bite my lip sharply.

I immediately started to struggle when I felt his hands go under my shirt and I when I ripped my mouth from his I let out a cry when he bit my neck hard.

"Get off of me!" I yelled.

"Shut up! You want this! It doesn't matter who it is!" Axel growled before letting one of his hands slide into my sweatpants and I struggled harder.

"Stop it! Get off!" I yelled and pushed at his shoulders, panic starting to bubble to the surface. "P-please!" I stuttered and yelped when he bit my neck again.

"You're body really wants this." Axel whispered hotly in my ear and I let out a sob.

"Axel… Stop! I don't want it like this! St-stop!" I broke down into to terrified sobs. Axel let me go and I sank to the floor. I shook and trembled as I cried. I flinched when Axel grabbed my arm to pull me up.

"D-don't touch me! Oh G-god j-just please d-don't touch m-me!" I cried. "J-just go…" I said softly.

"Roxas… Sh-shit, I-I-"

"Just go!" I yelled and curled into myself. When I heard his footsteps fade completely, I started taking deep breaths to calm myself down. I stood and took one final deep breath before moving out of the stairwell and back into the student union. I moved quickly to the kitchen and grabbed a biscuit and a sausage link.

I spotted Sora and Riku and sat at the table. I smiled at them. "Thanks for having my back guys." I said and began to pick at my biscuit.

"That is one terribly fake smile… that idiot made it worse didn't he?" Sora asked and I frowned.

"Our friendship is on a bit of an indefinite hiatus… so y-y-" I covered my mouth in shock when the sobs began to billow and tumble from my throat and out of my mouth.

"Sora…" Riku started as I continued to cry as quietly as possible.

"What?" Sora asked.

"His neck… there are more bite marks, Sora…" Riku said, the emotion buried in his voice completely unidentifiable.

"Roxas… what did he do to you?" Sora asked and I just shook my head and wrapped my arms around Sora. I felt like such a baby, but I wanted someone to hold me. I wanted someone with gentle hands to just hold me close for a minute.

When his arms went around me and began to sob again, quietly into his shirt. I didn't want any more attention today. After maybe five minutes I took a deep breath and pulled away from Sora. "Thanks for that." I said.

"I'm not talking to him anymore…" Sora said.

"N-no! Please! I know it s-seems bad… but he and I w-were so an-angry at each other. He just l-let his emotions t-take over. H-he's not a bad person… he d-didn't mean it." I said.

"Didn't mean it, Roxas! Look at you! You're obviously very shaken by this and I don't blame you! Something like this is too serious to ignore!" Riku said firmly.

"H-he's your b-best friend! And vice-v-versa! He n-needs you! Both of you!" I said and looked at them pleadingly.

"Why are you defending him? Look what he's done to you!" Sora yelped.

"Because I like him!" I yelled before quieting. "I like him so much I can't stand it… it sickens me. H-he's all I think about…" I mumbled.

"Roxas, this doesn't change that fact that he sexually harassed you." Riku said quietly.

"I can put it behind me… and I will. Please don't abandon him… I'm not going to, he's worth it! I know he is!" I said and looked between the two of them.

Sora was the one to break first. "This doesn't mean I've forgiven him. And he better _worship _you when you finally get together." Sora said.

Riku sighed. "I agree… if he treats you as if you are anything less than royalty, I really am going to kick his ass. Daddy doesn't think he's worthy…" Riku laughed.

I smiled and hugged Riku. "Thank you." I said and moved to eat my food.

-Cantabile-

Sunday passed by quickly and soon it was Monday again and classes were resuming. I got up and grabbed all of my toiletries and moved to go to the bathroom.

I knocked on the door and Naminé exited the room smelling like flowers. I smiled. "Good morning." I said.

"You look like you've calmed down from yesterday. I was really worried about you. Ummm… do you want some make up to cover…" She stumbled with her sentence, unsure of whether she should ask.

"Yeah… that would be great. I would rather not face a day full of "what happened's" and "Are you okay's."" I said and scratched the back of my head sheepishly.

"Yay!" Naminé exclaimed before clearing her throat. "Sorry… it's just that I really like doing make up and stuff. I always told myself if I wasn't a violinist, I would be a fashion coordinator." Naminé said with a smile.

"You'd be good for it… there's never a day when you don't look great." I said with a chuckle.

"Well thanks, hun! Now let's make these polka dots on your neck disappear!" she said.

It took around ten minutes but when it was done I felt a lot better about going to class. "Thank you Naminé!" I said and hugged her before heading to Theory.

My classes went by perfectly until it was time for my private lesson. I would have to sit in close quarters with Axel for an hour.

Could I handle that? I sighed and closed my eyes for a second.

Yes.

"Hello, Mr. Fair." I said as I entered the practice room. "I'm really happy with how my pieces are improving. And my playing overall too." I said and smiled.

"I'm quite impressed with your progress as well, Roxas. I think you have a bright future ahead of you." He said and I nodded.

"Where's Axel?" I asked.

"Right here." I jumped at the sound of his voice and I watched as he entered the room. I quickly looked away and took a breath. Calm down… Calm down, Roxas! He's not going to hurt you!

"Is it that cold in here, Roxas?" Mr. Fair asked.

"H-huh?" I frowned at my stutter.

"It's just that your hands are trembling. It's rather hard to play with shaky hands." Mr. Fair said.

I could feel Axel's eyes on me and I shook my head as if trying to shake it off. "Sorry… that's my anemia kicking in. Just give me a second and I'll be fine." I lied.

"By all means, take your time." Mr. Fair said. I took a deep breath and began a chant in my head.

This is for the Axel that cares.

Think about the Axel that cares.

The Axel that cares is worth it.

I took one more deep breath and looked at Axel. He was looking at me with pain in his eyes. I gave him the tiniest smile before turning and shaking my hands out. "Okay, what are we starting with?"

"I would like to hear the Donaudy, personally." Mr. Fair said and I nodded.

I looked over to Axel and began my playing. Just softly trying to relax myself further. I heard Axel inhale to sing.

_"O del mio amato ben perduto incanto!"_ He began, his voice silky smooth. Gently gliding through the air.

_"Lungi è dagli occhi miei chi m'era gloria e vanto!"_ He sang and I leaned into my piano. Moving into the next melodic theme.

_"Or per le mute stanze sempre lo cerco e chiamo."_ I picked it up as the song became more excited. _"Con pieno il cor di speranze?"_ I followed him as he sang the crying parts. _"Ma cerco invan, chiamo invan!"_ Then I slowed as he relaxed. _"E il pianger m'è sì caro, che di pianto sol nutro il cor."_ I played the interlude and we started up again.

_"Mi sembra, senza lui, triste ogni loco."_ The melody was the same and it was beautiful. I found myself rocking into the piano and then swaying towards Axel as we played together. _"Notte mi sembra il giorno; mi sembra gelo il foco."_ We continued.

_"Se pur talvolta spero di darmi ad altra cura,"_ I moved to speed up again as Axel sang.

_"Sol mi tormenta un pensiero: Ma, senza lui, che farò? Mi par così la vita vana cosa, __senza il mio ben."_ I waited for him as he held the notes and felt the music.

When it was over I sighed. I just wasn't feeling it fully… and for that I felt a little guilty.

"That was beautiful… but it lacked emotion. Which is completely strange for you two. You know what this means, Axel? What's the translation?" Mr. Fair asked.

Axel looked at me for a second before speaking. "Oh, lost enchantment of my dearly beloved! Far from my eyes is he who was, to me, glory and pride! Now through the empty rooms, I always seek him and call him with a heart full of hopes..." Axel paused, probably translating the words in his head.

"But I search in vain, I call out in vain! And the weeping is so dear to me, only with weeping alone do I console my heart…" He said looking to the floor.

"The next verse, Axel." Mr. Fair urged.

"It seems to me, without him, everywhere is sad. The day seems like night to me; the fire seems cold to me… Sometimes hope to give myself to another cure, but one thought alone torments me…" Axel stopped again and took a breath. He looked at me.

"But without him, what shall I do? To me, life seems a vain thing without my beloved." Axel finished and I had to look away from him.

"Axel… have you ever felt so lost? So _miserable_ because you can't seem to have what you desire so badly?" Mr. Fair asked.

"Yes…" Axel said softly.

"Axel you have _got _to feel this text. Roxas won't be able to play completely until you do. You love this person so much and now that he or she is gone, you don't want to live anymore! And whenever you so much as _think _about forgetting him or her, you are plagued with the most intense guilt. And whenever you call out for him or her, when ever you reach for him or her, it's all for naught! He or she could be in your arms, you could beat him or her into a false sense of submission, but you know you'll never really have him or her again! Really imagine how that must feel. It's _so _sad. You understand?"

Axel nodded.

"Try it again, give Roxas something to feed off of, otherwise, his playing is just a shell."

When I thought about what this song meant… I couldn't stop the gut wrenching feeling the brewed in my abdomen. The music just seemed one thousand percent more tragic after hearing the real words.

I began the song again and when Axel sang, his voice was so much fuller. So much more pleasing to hear because he was really conveying something. But to whom was he conveying?

I passed a glance to him. Only to be caught by his eyes. They were glistening with torment and guilt, with a longing that I had never seen before.

I suddenly felt this urgency, this desperation that was so intense. The music began to spin forward, the sheer need in the tones permeating throughout the room.

I felt my chest burn at the sound of Axel's voice… he sounded so unhappy.

_"Ma cerco invan!"_ he sang. _"Chiamo invan!"_ he cried. _"E il pianger m'è sì caro, che di pianto sol nutro il cor."_ He finished the verse sounding so lonely.

I played the interlude with that same sense of loneliness, with that same feeling of being lost.

Axel's voice only seemed to fall deeper and deeper into despair and my piano fell with him. I felt my heart clench and tears come to my eyes as he sang the climax and final line.

_"Ma, senza lui, che farò?"_ We quieted together weeping softly. _"Mi par così…"_ we let out a long, fading cry. _"la vita…"_ I played but he was still pausing, I looked back at him.

He was crying.

_"Vana cosa…"_ I picked up his last words. _"Senza il mio ben…"_ we finished and I let out a choked sob as I turned to look at him.

"S-sorry… I know I went too far… b-but it was tugging on my heart." Axel said and Mr. Fair just nodded.

"That was a very touching performance… I'm very proud. I'm sure in a real performance setting with an audience, you two will be very prepared and capable of pulling out the emotions you just felt without letting them get the best of you. So I'm going to let this settle by ending the lesson early. You guys have a nice day." He said before leaving.

I sniffed and wiped at my eyes before looking to Axel.

"Roxas… it must be so hard to even bear the sight of me. What I did to you… it was absolutely unforgivable. But still… I am so, so sorry. Roxas… I-I was so angry, I had never felt so jealous in my life before…" Axel said.

"We were both angry…" A laugh and a sob slipped from my mouth at the same time. "Axel… I like you _so _much, it hurts… and when you didn't show up at the opera… I felt like my heart to was going to shrivel away… and then when you kept telling me that I was easy… I couldn't take it. I went drinking because I was confused about my feelings for you… I just wanted to forget them all. And I almost did for that brief moment… but it came back and I stopped what I was doing… I'm really, _really _not that kind of person and when you grabbed me a-and… It broke my heart. I don't want to be someone you can play with when you're in the mood… I j-just w-want…" I trailed off looking away from him. I had never spilled out so much of my heart before… I just hoped that he would gather it back up and keep it safe.

"I know you're not the kind of person I said you were. When I saw that mark on your neck, I got so mad that I had lost my chance with you and so jealous of whoever was graced with your affections… I couldn't stand it! And I took it out on you. I just snapped. I want to give you everything! I want to call you mine and I don't want to share you with anyone else… Roxas… I _love _you… I know I jump to conclusions too soon and that I always seem to fight with you… but when I'm with you, I'm the happiest I've ever been. I'll do _anything_ to make it right… to erase all of the horrible things I did to you… I'll personally take you to every opera in the city for as long as you want and buy every ticket." Axel said and I laughed through my tears.

"I want to tape everything you just said and play it every night before I go to sleep." I said with a chuckle.

"Sweetheart, I will say it to you every night if you want. I won't do it out of guilt either, I'll do it for the sole purpose of making you happy." Axel said.

I shook my head. "Who knew such a loud mouthed narcissist could be such a romanticist." I said with a small smile.

"Are my romantic phrases doing anything in my favor?" Axel asked.

"They're nice to hear… but you kind of won me over at the 'I love you' part…" I said with a blush.

"So I can stop embarrassing myself now?" Axel asked.

"No, give me a little more." I said with a smirk.

"Roxas…" Axel paused before starting again. "Roxas…" he paused once more and I laughed.

"Seems as though someone has forgotten all of their romantic lines." I said and Axel groaned.

"I had some really good one's too!" Axel said and I shrugged.

"You could just tell me them later, right?" I asked.

Axel smirked. "Absolutely!" He walked over to me and I stood to face him. "I really want to kiss you… I'll be gentle, I swear." He said.

I put my arms up and around his neck before letting my fingers play with his deep-red locks. "Sorry Axel… the first rule of the practice room is 'no lewd or illicit behavior allowed.'" I said.

Axel chuckled. "When has anyone ever abided by the rules?" Axel asked.

"I just so happen to abide by the rules thank you very much." I said.

"Well, I welcome you into my realm of rebellion with this kiss." Axel said and moved in only to be evaded. "I think I'm going to make you work for my kisses. I don't think you deserve them yet." I said with a cackle.

Axel whined. "What do I have to do?" he asked.

"I think you need to talk to my parents face to face first." I said.

"What? They're in France!" Axel cried.

"Not those parents." I said with a giggle before letting go of Axel and leaving the room.

"Wait! What are you talking about?" Axel called as he trailed behind me.

I smiled when I felt him grab the back of my shirt like a small child trailing behind a grown-up.

I let out a happy sigh when I realized that this would work out. I had gotten my Tosca before he escaped.

I couldn't wait to tell Sora!

A/N: Whoo, that was a lot more words than expected… I wrote it in the early hours of the morning and I had a huge headache. So please, ease my pain by reviewing!


	11. Chapter 11

**Cantablie**

**Disclaimer: **I own the plot and only the plot!

OH MY GOD GUYS! I HAVE FAN ART! I'm so happy and it's so beautiful!

If you want to see it go here and take out the spaces:

www. deviantart. com/#/d4nttek

It was created by **code-koda** and I am eternally grateful to her (or him? It's hard to tell gender on the computer!)! This chapter is dedicated to you!

If any of you are artistically inclined and like my stories enough to get inspired by them, feel free to do some fan art… I've always been jealous of those authors with their awesome fanart… but now I have my own kickass fanart! TAKE THAT YOU PUNKS!

Chapter 11

When we got to my dorm room I turned and looked at Axel. He was still very confused as to whom he needed to talk to. I smiled up at him but flinched when he wrapped an arm around my waist.

I guess I wasn't completely over the drama from before. But I would get over it… Axel frowned and I saw pain flash behind the forest of green that was his eyes. I grabbed one of his locks of hair and tugged it gently.

"You have to reconcile with Sora and Riku before you can get any kisses from me. I just wouldn't feel right if this wasn't okay with them. Do you understand?" I asked and worried at my lip.

Axel grabbed my chin and I berated myself for trembling at his touch. "Don't bite your lip like that… you could hurt yourself." He said and smiled at me. "So am I going in solo or is this a duet?" Axel asked.

"Well if everything goes well it'll be a quartet. Let's go." I said and opened the door. I walked into my dorm room and knocked on Sora's room. "Sora, Riku? I need to tell you something… Axel needs to talk to you as well." I said.

I smiled when the door opened and Riku smiled at me. "Hey, Rox… Axel…" I frowned when his voice changed from cheery to dry.

"Cousin! I want to show you this solo horn piece that I want you to accompany. Are you up to it?" Sora asked and I nodded.

"Sure… but can we talk first? It's kind of important…" I said.

Sora sighed and nodded. "You two figured things out, right?" Sora asked.

"Yeah… and I want to be with him… but I can't if you guys haven't reconciled…" I said and moved over to the couch when Axel stood.

"I know a queue when I hear it… Riku, Sora… I'm sorry I let you guys down. I promise those aren't my true colors… they're just my worst ones… I already apologized to Roxas and I know I have a lot of making up to do but it would be worth it if you guys forgave me." Axel said.

"It's not that easy Axel…" Sora said. "Roxas is the only one capable of forgiving you that quickly… and that's because he has a gentle heart. I'm not like that… I won't forgive you until I see some major improvements." Sora said.

"I agree Axel… I don't think you realize the gravity of the situation. You really hurt all of us with your actions… you didn't just let us down… I really felt betrayed by what you did and I'm not really ready to let everything go back to normal. " Riku said and I felt my heart sink.

"What can he do to make it right?" I asked on Axel's behalf.

"He can start with tending to your neck a little." Riku said and Sora nodded.

I froze. I didn't want to show Axel that… it would hurt him more.

"His neck? What's wrong with it?" Axel asked.

"Nothing…" I said and Sora scoffed.

"Why don't you go to the bathroom and find out? Riku and I are getting lunch." Sora said.

"But what abou-" I started.

"If you wanted our consent Roxas, you have it, but if Axel wants our friendship again, he has to earn it. And Axel…" Riku started.

"Yes?" Axel looked at this temporary ex-best friend.

"You know you don't deserve him so I make sure you treasure him…" He finished.

"Yeah! And if I see even one _tiny _scratch on him, I'm going to kick the shit out of you!" Sora snapped.

Axel nodded. "Understood." He said and when they left the room he looked at me.

"What's wrong with your neck, Roxas?" he asked and I shook my head frantically.

"Nothing!" I yelped and moved to go into my room. Axel grabbed the back of my shirt.

"Roxas… I'm serious, let's go into the bathroom so I can take a look." He looked at me with these pleading eyes… I couldn't say no.

He walked me to the bathroom and sat me on the toilet. I watched as Axel kneeled in front of me and inspected my neck.

"I told you there was nothing wrong." I said.

"Bullshit." Axel said before standing. "I've put on enough makeup to know what it looks like on skin." Axel chuckled. "I'm a gay opera singer, what did you expect?"

I frowned but watched as he looked through the cabinets around the sink. While he did that I stood and quickly tried to scurry out the room.

"Hold it!" Axel said and grabbed my wrist. I yelped and yanked it back without thinking.

"I-I'm sorry…" I mumbled and looked away from him.

Axel sighed and spoke. "Could you please go sit on the toilet, Roxas? I'm not going to force you, but I would really appreciate it if you would let me see your neck." Axel's voice sounded a little strained and I felt a flash of guilt.

I moved over to the toilet and sat. "I-It's not as bad as it looks." I said softly.

"I don't like the sound of that…" Axel moved over to me and ran a hand through my hair gently before taking the makeup-removing wipe up to my neck. I winced when he pressed down on one of the bruises.

I sat quietly for a minute. "Shit…" Axel said under his breath and I bit my lip.

"It's not that bad…" I tried to assuage.

"_Not that bad?_ Roxas, this looks terrible! These aren't love bites, sweetheart, this is abuse!" Axel said and pulled on my shirt to stand me up and walk me over to the mirror. I cringed at what I saw.

There were three very large and very dark bruises on my neck, the seemed to bleed this sickly yellow color and it made the Marley's fading hickey look like a tiny fleabite.

"Look at what I've done, Rox… oh god, I'm such a terrible human being… Fuck!" Axel was beating himself up about the bruises and I sighed before moving back over to the toilet.

"This is why I didn't want you to know about it… I didn't want you to be any more upset than you already were." I pouted.

"Rox… don't spare me, okay? If I do something horrible, give me your worst. I don't want any mercy." Axel said.

I laughed. "No normal man would ever say that…" I said.

Axel sighed. "Well, I'm not exactly normal am I?" he asked softly before moving over to me again.

I smiled. "No… no you are not." I said and glanced at him fondly.

"Can I kiss them better?" Axel asked and I choked on my own spit.

"Kiss them better?" I coughed a little.

"Yeah… they look like they need some love healing." Axel said with a small smile.

I shook my head at him before pressing my forehead against his. "Go ahead." I said.

Axel let out a sigh of relief, as if this one thing could end world hunger or something. Maybe he was just relieved he could do something to make it just a teensy bit better. I shivered a little when his head close in on my neck and I could feel his breath against my skin.

I sat there for a second waiting for something to happen… it was as if he was stuck. Then I felt myself blush when his soft, moist lips pressed gently against one of my bruises. My breath caught in my throat when he kissed it again and I closed my eyes at the sensation.

"That's one…" he said in a quiet voice before he moved to the next bruise closer to my collarbone.

"It's okay, you d-don't have to do it any mo-aahhh…" I bit my lip to stop myself from making any embarrassing noises. His lips were only ghosting over my skin in fluttering kisses but I had never felt so…

I didn't even really no how to put it but my face was so hot it almost made my eyes water. He gave the last bruise a tiny lick and I gasped at the feeling.

"Axel…" I whispered.

"Yes?" he asked softly as if the moment would fade if we were any louder.

"I'm hungry…" I said and laughed when my stomach decided to give a growl.

Axel chuckled and moved to look at my still red face. "I say we go eat then, huh? I'll take you out. Where do you want to go?" Axel asked.

"Is it sad that I'm craving really greasy Chinese food from that hole in the wall down the street?" I asked.

Axel laughed. "Yeah… but I was never one to scoff at hole in the walls." Axel stood.

I raised an eyebrow. "You? Go to hole in the walls? I highly doubt that!" I said.

"What? I may be a professional opera singer, but I'm still only eighteen! Doesn't my immaturity give it away?" Axel asked.

"Well you are pretty immature…" I said.

"I guess I can't trust you to lie to me when you're supposed to." I said.

"I guess not." I said and stood as well. "Ummm, can you put some makeup back on these things? Someone might think I was strangled…" I trailed off sheepishly.

"Gotcha. Sit back down." Axel said and pulled out the base and powder from Naminé's toiletries bag.

"Sorry Nam…" I said softly before Axel fixed me up.

-Cantabile-

We left the dorm room and I smiled when Axel took my hand. "I wonder if people are going to be surprised that I'm together with you now…" Axel wondered aloud.

I shrugged. "Who cares? I just want to eat a giant eggroll and a bowl of fried rice with some sweet and sour pork!" I said with a laugh.

Axel shook his head at me as we moved down the stairs. Not caring about the looks we got from time to time.

"I think I want some lo mein and a wanton soup…" he wondered aloud again. I squeezed his hand a little and pulled him towards the doors of the building. "Then what are we waiting for! The Chinese awaits!" I said with another laugh as we began to move down the street.

We got inside and the small restaurant and I grinned when I realized we were the only one's here. "I knew this was a good choice!" I said and moved to a table before sitting.

Axel handed me a menu and I picked out the foods I wanted to order. Axel asked me what I wanted and I told him as he moved to the front to order for us. I sighed happily and waited for Axel to come back.

He handed me a drink and I thanked him as I placed it on the table. "Thanks for this… for taking me out, I mean…" I said with a beam before blushing and taking a sip of my coke.

Axel giggled at me and I looked over to him, puzzled. "What?" I asked.

"Are you always this smiley?" Axel asked.

I felt my smile sink before coming back full force. "No… I'm just really happy right now… I never had time for a boyfriend back home… I was always practicing or working… so I'm glad that for once I can like someone and do something about it, you know?" I said.

Axel smiled in return. "I'm glad I could help." He said.

"I'm glad, you're glad." I said.

"Well I'm glad, you're glad that I'm glad." Axel said.

"I'm glad that you're glad that I'm glad that you're glad." I said trying to get the last word in.

"Well… I'm not going to go into that anymore. We might as well be saying, 'I WUV YOU MORE!'" Axel gushed with a stupid look on his face.

I laughed and threw my straw wrapper at him.

He frowned and threw his wrapper at me before taking a sip of his water. I laughed even louder at that.

"What?" he asked.

"Could you be any more of an opera singer? Room temperature water with no ice or lemon? I can't help but find that _highly _amusing." I said.

"Well, I'm sorry that I striving for vocal longevity! I want to be able to sing high C's and possibly D's when I'm seventy! If I want that, I have to make sacrifices." Axel defended.

"I can't believe you're thinking that far into the future." I said and moved to stand when the employee said our food was ready.

Axel put a hand gently on my shoulder and I sat back down. Axel grabbed our food and brought it back to the table. "I think that far into the future because no usually does. And besides, I've already decided that the day I can't sing anymore is the day I die." Axel said and I nodded.

"I guess that's how I feel about playing piano… but seriously, what are you gonna do next, lip trills in the middle of the restaurant?" I asked.

"Sure!" Axel began trilling loudly and I yelped before shushing him frantically.

"STOP!" I laughed and leaned over the table to try and shut him up. Axel stopped trilling in order to laugh and began to eat his food. I shook my head at him and glared playfully.

"Don't do that again…" I said before taking a bite of my fried rice.

"Yes, sir." Axel said and smiled around his eating utensil.

Axel and I ate quietly for a second until Axel shot up suddenly, his eyes bright. "You hear that? This is my jam!" Axel said and I stopped eating to pay attention to the soft music playing in the background.

"What is it?" I asked.

"It's 'A mes amis,' it's a Donizetti aria! You've never heard it? I'm so mad because Ms. Gainsborough won't let me sing it! She says nine high C's is too much for me right now… Maybe when I'm a senior she'll finally let me do it." Axel rambled and I smirked.

"So there are some things you can't do… that makes me feel a little bit better." I said and Axel scoffed.

"Well, it's not like I _can't _do it! I most certainly can! I just can't do it _officially!_" Axel added in his defense.

"Mmmhmm, okay." I said knowing that it would aggravate him.

"I can do it, dammit!" Axel said and stood.

I stopped laughing and looked over to him. "What are you doing?" I asked.

He ignored me and stood tall before opening his mouth_. "__Pour mon âme quel destin! J'ai sa flamme, et j'ai sa main!"_ Axel sang loudly in the restaurant and I covered my face in shame.

"Axel, stop." I said showing him that I wasn't amused.

Axel waggled his brows at me before his voice shot up again to sing more high Cs._ "__Pour mon âme quel destin! J'ai sa flamme, et j'ai sa main!"_ I felt my face burn in embarrassment and I stood up. "Axel, seriously! I get it, you can stop it now!" I yelled but he ignored me.

I moved to do something to stop him but he scurried away from my approaching form. I basically chased him around the tables as he sang. _"__Me voici, me voici militaire et Mari! Me voici, me voici militaire et Mari! Militaire et Mari! Militaire et Mari!"_

I ran after him and he turned to face me before stopping abruptly and I ran into him. He grabbed me around the waist and reached for the last high C. _"Millitaire!"_ He sang and kept going. He held onto that C for forever and a day before ending the piece and pulling me down into a dip and kissing me.

I squeaked for a second before surrendering myself and relaxing into the kiss. He slowly pulled out of the kiss and looked into my eyes. I found myself getting lost in his deep greens.

We snapped out of our reverie when we heard clapping and I stood up straight to see the cook and the clerk smiling and applauding. I blushed and bent over in a bow when Axel gently pushed my head forward and down.

Axel then pulled me back to the table and we resumed our lunch. I bit into my eggroll and laughed. I chewed quickly and swallowed before breaking out into hysterical laughter. "Is your whole life a fucking opera, Axel?" I laughed and shook my head at the same time. I had never been so embarrassed but I couldn't help but enjoy the sheer liberation I felt from it.

"Is it sad that I could probably say yes and it actually be true?" Axel asked and I sighed before wiping a tear at the corner of my eye.

"No it's not sad… just strange…" I said and finished my lunch.

"When is your next class?" Axel asked finishing his food as well.

"It's in a half an hour. Are you ready to go?" I smiled at him.

"Yeah, let's go." He said and we waved our goodbyes to our audience who were just sitting around waiting for more customers.

Axel took my hand again and we walked back to school. I pulled him into the building and beamed at him. "Thank you for lunch… I'll see you late-" I was interrupted by a pair of lips on mine. I felt arms curl around my waist and I stiffened for a second before letting go for a second time and relaxing. Axel bit my lower lip very softly and I sighed into the sensation. He pulled away slightly and smiled at me.

"You're like sunshine when you smile like that. It's your best face yet." Axel murmured quietly against my lips. I giggled, "It's very easy for you to make me smile… your goofiness is all it takes." I said.

"I'm not goofy… I'm spontaneous!" He said looking affronted. I giggled again.

"What ever helps you sleep at night…" I replied.

"What ever helps me sleep at night? I'll take you then!" He said and I yelped when his scooped me up.

"AXEL!" I laughed. "I HAVE TO GO TO CLASS!" I covered my blushing face and Axel put me down.

"I hope you realize by now that insulting me only leads to embarrassment." Axel said.

"I got it… don't insult Axel." I said and I blushed before getting up on my tippy toes to kiss him once on the lips. When that was done I ran off before he could say anything.

I made it to my dorm room and sighed. It was like I a freshman in high school again. I never had to scurry away after kissing someone so briefly.

It was pretty pathetic… I thought before shrugging and moving to grab my books.

I figured that I had plenty of time to regain my confidence. Axel wouldn't know what hit him. I giggled.

This sure would be an adventure!

A/N: Another chapter! YAY! Review please and I'll be motivated to write more! I'm aiming for over ten! WE CAN DO THIS! JUST PRESS THE BUTTON! :D


	12. Chapter 12

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **So yeah… if you haven't figured it out by now… I worry for your lost soul…

Another update for you guys! Yay for Mardi Gras break!

Chapter 12

I was walking down the hallways when I heard the first set of whispers.

"You see that freshman? I heard he's trying to seduce Axel Sonheim…"

"I thought he already did?"

"Either way! It's disgusting! How could he do such a thing? Poisoning the most promising individual of the classical genre… he's bad news!"

I continued to walk, paying no mind to the crazy girls staring at me as if I were the plague. I shook my head when I entered the classroom… I mean, come on, this was college at a _conservatory! _Leave that ridiculous high school drama at home.

"Hey Roxy! I don't want to sound nosy… but are you really dating Axel Sonheim? I thought you didn't like him." Dem asked when I sat at my desk.

"Yeah, I'm dating him… and I didn't really like him at first… but he's… well, I like him a lot." I said.

"Aww, that's too bad. I was sure you and Marley were going to be something… you guys had some pretty intense chemistry if you know what I mean…" Demyx whispered.

I chuckled. "I like Marley and if I didn't like Axel… I would consider him… but I just… it's really hard to explain." I said.

"No, I get it… even though Axel's kind of a dick sometimes… you can't help but love the kid anyway so you chose him. Marley will understand… though he'll be disappointed." Demyx said with a giggle.

"He'll find someone else… he's a good lookin' dude. And he's a good kisser…" I whispered back.

"Damn… I wonder why he isn't with somebody already then… I need to look into this!" Demyx said and I laughed.

"That's not nosey at all!" I said sarcastically.

"Alright, it's time for class to start. I want complete silence." I quieted when Mr. S gave us 'the stare.'

I watched Demyx shiver under the look and I had to hold in a giggle.

When theory and musicianship classes were over I moved to go to my practice hour. I spotted a face I hadn't seen in a while. "Hey Olette, long time no see! How has your semester been so far?" I asked with a smile.

Olette threw me a glare and knocked me to the side as she walked down the hall. I frowned. "Olette?" I asked.

"Don't talk to me… I want nothing to do with a slut like you." She said and my eyes widened.

"What? Why would you call me that?" I asked, completely taken back by her words.

"Don't play coy with me. I never knew you were so conniving! I can't believe you slept with someone else when you're supposedly dating Axel." Olette spat.

"I'm not sleeping with anyone! What is going on here? Who told you I was sleeping around?" I asked.

"It doesn't matter all I know is that I see your true colors and I don't want anything to do with you." Olette snapped and moved down the hallway.

I looked around at some of the people around me, a shocked look on my face. Some of the people glared at me as they walked up or down the hall. I had no idea what the fuck was going on… but it was getting on my nerves.

"Why would someone spread such a stupid rumor?" I grumbled to myself as I moved towards the practice rooms. "Could you be any less mature… God, some people are so fuckin' stupid." I ranted before unlocking a practice room and sitting at the piano inside.

I pulled out the pieces I had learned so far here at T-Con and I smiled. I had improved so much since I got here… and I wouldn't let any sort of stupid rumor get me down.

I pulled out a piece that I found in the library. I really wanted Axel to sing it, but I was too afraid to ask. I didn't want to interfere with his teachers either. I liked it because it sounded so simple… but there were hidden difficulties for both the singer and the accompanist.

It was written by a composer named Hugo Wolf… I listened to his music. I couldn't help but feel as though a lot of his music is full of mystery and underlying angst and misery… I wonder what kind of life Wolf must have lead to create such beautiful, haunting music.

I began the piece and I let myself sink into the twinkling unknown. I sighed in relaxation as I continued the piece, the strange and foreign chords and melodies capturing me completely.

I jumped when I heard loud knocks on my practice room window. I turned and frowned when I saw an angry pink-headed male.

I opened the door and asked. "Are you okay, Marluxia?"

"No… I'm not fucking okay Roxas! I have people coming up to me calling me a 'home wrecker and a conniving man-whore! What the fuck have you been telling people? I didn't sleep with you! You didn't want to!" Marley yelled.

"I didn't tell anyone anything! Why would I tell people that I was sleeping with you, when I'm not even sleeping with my own boyfriend? And I haven't spread rumors about sleeping with him either! And you're not the only one getting all these insults thrown at you! Someone I considered to be my friend called me a conniving slut! I haven't had sex with anyone here! Someone is spreading rumors about me okay! Don't come here yelling at me for something I didn't do!" I yelled. If there was one thing I hated, it was being accused.

"You must have told someone something Roxas! Why would my name get thrown into the mix, otherwise! I don't talk to you or hang with you. And I don't want people saying shit about me that isn't true!" he replied angrily.

"How you think I feel? Not only do I have random strangers singling me out, I have you, a person who actually knows the truth, tell me that I spread the rumors. I haven't been with Axel for more than a week and I already have people giving me shit for it!" I said and ran a hand through my hair to calm down. I was so angry and upset that people I didn't mind having around would actually believe those rumors about me.

I growled and wiped at my watering eyes. "I just want to get back to practicing. I don't know how this happened or who did it… and I'm sorry you got pulled into it but that's all I can offer. What do you expect me to do? It's not like people will believe me if I go around telling them that those rumors are just rumors, they want to believe those kind of rumors because it seems people like to have reasons to be complete assholes." I said and sat at the piano. It wasn't fair… why did I have to feel guilty about something I didn't do!

"Shit… look, I'm sorry. You're right… I know you're not the kind of person to spread rumors like that… God, I feel like a real dick right now… you wanna say something so I don't have to stand here feeling like a douche bag?" Marley asked and I burst into laughter.

I wiped all the water from my eyes and chuckled. "I'm sorry, you just sounded so much like Axel just then… it was funny." I said bit my lip. I wanted to see Axel. I hadn't seen him once today.

"So what the fuck are we gonna do about this bullshit?" Marley asked.

I shook my head. "I have no idea. All I know is that it pisses me off. I don't think we can do much about it… it's not like we can go around convincing every person on campus that the rumors are fake. They probably expect us to do that anyway." I said.

Suddenly the door opened and Marley and I turned to see Olette in the doorway. "There's no denying it now! You're cheating on Axel with that pink-haired home wrecker! And you're nothing but a dirty little slut!" Olette yelled and advanced towards me.

"What the fuck, Olette? Do you see us doing anything illicit?" I asked.

"I don't need to, I can just tell!" she cried out and I scoffed.

Marley looked at me with an incredulous face. "What the hell is she on?" Marley asked and I shook my head.

"What is going on here?" I heard Axel's voice and I ran over to him.

"Thank friggin' God you're here. Someone has been spreading rumors abou-"

"About you cheating on me with some guy named Marluxia and that you're poisoning my potential as an artist… yeah… I heard. And I promise you, you're not the only one who is getting tired of this." Axel said dryly.

"Axel don't believe him! He's tricking you!" Olette snapped.

"I'm not, Olette! Stop fucking trying to fuck things up!" I snapped. I really was growing tired of this shit.

"It's alright, Roxas. I know there is nothing going on between you and Marley… we've already gone over that, remember?" Axel asked.

"Yeah, I know…" I said and wrapped my arms around him. "I'm just tired." I added.

"Olette… Roxas isn't cheating on me… so could you please stop acting as though he is?" Axel asked.

Olette glared at me for a second before smiling at Axel. "Fine…" she said and moved down the hallway.

"She didn't seem as crazy when I first met her." I mumbled into Axel's shirt.

Axel laughed. "Are you okay, sweet cheeks? You look like you've had a really long day." He said.

I chuckled. "Please don't call me that… and yes, I've had a really long day. Basically every girl in the school has been giving me the evil eye since they found out we're together." I said.

"I'll see about fixing that." Axel said.

I gave him a puzzled look before turning to Marley. "Sorry again about this." I said.

"It's not your fault. I'm just going to go back to the dorms. I'll see you later, I guess." Marley replied before leaving.

I sighed and Axel rubbed my back before letting go. "What were you practicing?" Axel asked.

I blushed. "Well… umm… it's just this song." I said and moved over to my binder and closed it.

"What song is it? Do I know it?" Axel asked and tried to grab the binder that I hid behind me.

"It's nothing." I said.

"Then why are you hiding it?" he asked and I relented.

Axel took the binder and opened it. "Verschwiegene Leibe... Secret Love, huh?" Axel waggled his brows at me and I blushed.

"I think it's pretty…" I mumbled.

"Then play it." Axel said and leaned over me. I sighed and began to play the piece, not caring about Axel hovering over my shoulder.

"_Über Wipfel und Saaten in den_ _Glanz hinein…"_ Axel sang softly as I played.

I didn't have to know what it meant to hear the quiet excitement of the words.

"_Wer mag sie erraten, wer holte sie ein?"_ Axel continued with a slow diminuendo.

"_Gedanken sich wiegen, die Nacht ist verschwiegen,"_ Axel's voice sang softly, holding onto the secret of the night. _"Gedanken sind frei."_ Axel was taking me away, somewhere no one would find us. Where we were free to think as we wished.

"_Errät' es nur eine, wer an sie gedacht,"_ Axel sang these words in my ear. I could feel his eyes on me. _"Beim Rauschen der Haine, wenn niemand mehr wacht,"_ his breath ghosted over my skin as he sang, I could feel the heat rise to my face as I continued to play.

Axel leaned in even closer to my ear. _"Als die Wolken, die fliegen - Mein Lieb ist verschwiegen"_ He sang so quietly into my ear, his mouth ghosting over the skin. I had no idea what the words meant literally, but I couldn't help but feel as though he was singing about a sinful desire. The dissonant tones at that moment clashed almost silently in the air before be continued.

"_Und schön_ _wie die Nacht."_ He finished and I let my hands float away across the piano. I played the final chord and let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding.

"This song is beautiful… and a little creepy." Axel said.

"Really? Do you know what it's about?" I asked.

"Well… at first I thought it was about a pair of forbidden lovers sneaking away into the fields to be free of watchful eyes… but that's not really the case." Axel said.

"Well, what is the case?" I asked.

"It's an unrequited love… the person in the poem has kept his love secret and thinks about his loved one late at night when no one is awake out in the fields. He lets his mind wander about his lover… and based on the sound of the music… I think he's having naughty fantasies about this person… like I said, creepy." Axel said with a smile. "But at the end… the text makes it seem as though this secret coveting is the purest and most beautiful form of love… you have good taste in vocal repertoire. This is fantastic. Do you mind if I take this to my voice lessons? Do you mind learning it seriously?" Axel asked.

I blushed. "No… I kind of wanted you to sing it, but I was too chicken to ask you about it." I said.

Axel chuckled and kissed my ear and cheek before standing. "Are you done for the day?" he asked.

I nodded and picked up all my stuff. "I promised Sora and Riku that I would have dinner with them… did they mention it to you? If they did then that would mean it was okay for me to bring you with me." I said.

Axel shook his head. "No they didn't mention it. It's fine, mein Schatz, go have dinner with Sora and Riku. Tell them I'll catch up with them later." Axel pecked my lips and I frowned.

"Mein Schatz?" I asked.

"German term of endearment. Like my sweetheart, darling, sappy stuff…" Axel explained and I smiled.

"I'll see you later… um… mein lieb…" I said randomly pulling those words from the song.

Axel smiled. "I love you too." He whispered in my ear before leaving.

I blushed. "Did I really say that?" I wondered to myself before heading towards the student union.

A/N: I hope this isn't a useless filler chapter! It doesn't really go anywhere but I hope you liked it… please review mein liebes! I only need like 10 to 15 in order to update again… I know you can do it! :D


	13. Chapter 13

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **I have already disclaimed to so many times… the only thing I own the plot and my love for writing this fanfic.

I know I said I would write more over my break… but then I realized I had midterms right when I got back from partying during Mardi Gras… the peeps at Loyola are insane if they think college freshman will be able to function that Monday, let alone take a test!

Anyway here's another lovely chapter!

Chapter 13

I felt really bad leaving Axel to go hang with Sora and Riku. Though they saw how well Axel has been treating me, they just aren't ready to accept him back into our square of friendship.

And I was slightly concerned about Axel when I left him. He looked really sad about not being able to come along… but there was something else in his eyes… I don't really know what it was.

I would call him later to check on him… hopefully that didn't make me an obnoxious boyfriend.

I sighed and walked down the street to get to the restaurant where Sora and Riku were waiting for me. They said I might like the restaurant and so I wondered exactly what it was.

When I reached the corner I smiled. Le Petit Café was the name of the place. I entered and when I saw Sora and Riku sitting at a table by the window, I moved over to them.

"Hey guys! Thanks for inviting me… but are you sure this is a French café, you know a lot of places have French names but American foods…" I said with a smile.

"No, you're supposed to tell _us _if this is a real French restaurant, silly! You're the expert in this case!" Sora said and pulled me into a hug.

"Okay… well let me see the menu." I said as I sat down.

"Here." Riku said and I smiled at him.

I opened the menu and smiled. "So far it has one check… the entire menu is in French and there are no descriptions… the waiters are supposed to tell you about the meals." I looked around the menu and chuckled.

"Even if this wasn't a French restaurant… you have to be a damn good imitation to have escargot on your menu." I added.

"Wait… Escargot… like, snails?" Sora asked and I nodded and licked my lips at the thought of delicious escargot.

"I thought that shit was fake! I thought that was a joke! French people really eat snails?" Sora asked incredulously.

"You really shouldn't clump people in generalizations like that, Sora. I'm sure many other people in Europe and the rest of the world enjoy the delicacy." Riku said and Sora winced.

"I don't know why you are cringing Sora, you've never had it and it's fuckin' delicious!" I said with a laugh.

"I just… it's snails!" Sora exclaimed.

"Cooked snails… with a delicious garlic butter sauce… oh god don't make me start drooling!" I said.

"Hello, are you guys ready to order?" the waiter asked when he came up to our table.

"Oui, Je voudrais les escargots et un verre de l'eau… s'il vous plait." I ordered in my native tongue to test to see if the waiter would understand.

"Ah! Parlez-vous français?" The waiter asked and I smiled.

"Oui Monsieur. Je suis francais. Je suis originaire de Montpellier." I said.

"Vraiment? Mes grands-parents vivent à Montpellier. C'est beau, oui?" The waiter replied and I nodded. My home was the most beautiful place on earth.

"C'est très vrais! J'adore Montpellier. Il est le meilleur endroit dans le monde! Visitez-vous ton grands-parents souvent?" I inquired.

"Je voudrais parler avec vous un peu plus ... mais j'ai besoin de vous servir en premier. Peut-être après mon quart de travail est terminée?" The waiter asked if I could talk with him after his shift was over and it would have been nice to have a nice chat but I immediately thought of Axel waiting for me at the conservatory.

"Je regret mais je veux retourner à mon copain. Il est un chanteur au conservatoire. Je l'aime." I said with a fond look on my face.

The waiter chuckled and nodded. "I figured you were too perfect to be available. That boyfriend of yours is lucky." The waiter said.

"Amen." Sora said dryly and Riku nodded.

"So sorry about that… what would you two like to order?" he asked.

"Well if Roxy is gonna eat the snails, I'm gonna eat 'em too!" Sora said with a determined voice.

"Very good… I promise you'll like them. And for you, sir?" He turned his gaze to Riku.

"Je voudrais le croque monsieur et un verre de l'eau." Riku spoke perfectly and my jaw dropped.

"You were holding out on me this whole time!" I yelled incredulously not realizing that Sora had yelled the same thing, making the exclamation that much louder.

Riku laughed and shook his head. "I'm just really good at guessing…"

I sighed and Sora shoved his boyfriend slightly with a groan. "It's not fair… Riku is so much smarter than me… I'm so dumb!" Sora cried.

I shook my head at Sora… I knew he was fishing for complements from his boyfriend.

"No Sora, you're perfect. And besides… if you were really smart, I wouldn't impress you half as much as I do now… I wouldn't worry about it Sora. You're adorable and I love you just the way you are." Riku said the spiel as if he had recited it many times.

I laughed and kissed Sora's cheek. "We love you Sora."

Sora giggled and hugged us both, which meant he actually pulled our heads into one arm choke holds…

Sora, Riku and I joked around as we waited for our food to come. When it did I smiled at the sight of my meal. "Are you ready to taste the greatest thing you will ever taste?" I asked Sora.

"Umm… how exactly do you eat it? What the hell is this?" Sora asked and lifted an awkward looking utensil.

I laughed. "Sora, you hold the shell with that. And you use the long utensil to pull the food out. Watch." I pulled the delicious snail out of its shell before eating it. I moaned at the taste… they cooked it just right and everything was balanced in flavor.

"This place passes… it's a French restaurant." I said.

Riku chuckled. "Well it's a good thing we took you here then." He said and took the utensils from Sora. I think he was worried Sora might poke an eye out with the way he was handling the equipment.

"Here baby, like this." Riku followed my instruction and successfully removed the snail. He gave it to Sora and I waited as he ate.

"That… isn't so bad… the texture is a little odd but the taste is quite good." Sora said.

I nodded. "It's great. I always get mad when people hate on escargot without trying it first."

"I'm glad I did try it. You want one Riku?" Sora asked and pulled a snail out for him.

"Sure but only if you feed it to me." Riku smirked and I made a playful gagging noise.

I continued to eat as Sora fed the snail to Riku. He agreed that escargot was indeed, quite delicious.

I pulled out my phone and called Axel, I really wanted to tell him about how I made Riku and Sora eat snails. I could picture the look on his face when he misunderstood the phrase and then the look of realization after he thought about it.

When I heard the tone signifying that Axel's line was busy, I hung up and put my phone on the table. He would call back in a few minutes after finishing up his conversation with such and such. That was the drill.

I was slightly puzzled when my phone hadn't rung after we had finished eating. Sora paid for our meals and I decided I would call him one more time. I wasn't going to call obsessively, just twice.

The phone rang a little before the busy tone sounded again. I sighed and put my phone in my pocket.

"Are you okay Roxas?" Riku asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I said and sent him a smile. I really was okay, I wasn't the only person Axel talked to; he had a _lot _of friends. I wouldn't ever think to get in the way of that… if I did I would be mad with myself for being obnoxious.

"Rox, I'm going back to our dorm. Are you coming?" he asked.

I thought for a second. I really wanted to see what Axel was up to. I didn't want to get in his way… I was just curious. I turned to Riku. "Do mind if I go with you to your dorm? I want to see how Axel is doing." I said.

"Sure thing. Sora, Roxas and I will meet up with you soon. We're going to take a visit to my dorm first." Riku said and Sora nodded.

"Okay, I'll see you later then!" Sora said cheerfully and moved to return to our dorm room.

Riku and I walked up the stairs and made our way to Riku's dorm room. When he opened the door I walked in slowly and looked around to see if I could find Axel.

"He sleeps in room B." Riku said and I nodded before heading to that door. I knocked and entered only to find it empty. I then noticed how much larger this bedroom was compared to mine. It was a little unfair.

Maybe… I could sleep in Axel's bed from time to time. I snickered. I could be really mean and make him switch with me. I giggled maniacally. Yes… that would be evil.

"You okay, Rox?" Riku asked.

I jumped at his voice and blushed. "Yeah… I was plotting." I said with a mischievous smirk.

"You shouldn't be allowed to make a face like that… it's like the devil's incarnate! There is nothing but pure evil." Riku chuckled.

I grinned. "Oh but I am evil!" I said with a giggle.

"Should I be worried for my best friend?" Riku asked and my grin turned soft.

"You referred to Axel as your best friend." I noted gently.

"He was always my best friend Roxas… I forgave him earlier this week… I just don't want him to know it yet… I want him to do something to really earn it, you understand. And I'm pretty sure that's how Sora feels as well." Riku said.

I smiled. "That makes me really happy to hear. I worry about him sometimes; he can get into really funky moods when he misses hanging with you. He misses his bros." I said.

Riku nodded and sighed. "Sorry he's not here… I guess you'll just have to see him later. But I wonder what he's doing… I mean, you're the best thing around for him… why would he waste time with anyone else." Riku said and I chuckled.

"Well, he loves basking in attention so I let him go play to feed his addiction then come back to me less obnoxious." I said.

"Oh my god! Why haven't I ever thought of that? Damn that would have saved me so many hours of pure annoyance at his ridiculousness." Riku exclaimed and I laughed.

"Well now that you know my tactics, you can use it. I'm just going to head back to my dorm. I'll see you guys later." I said and headed out.

I yawned as I walked down the stairs to get to my dorm… I was pretty tired and I wanted to go to sleep. I was about halfway down the stairs when this random girl, I think her name was Maleficent, grabbed my arm and pulled me to the side.

She looked furious and I gave her a confused look. "Can I help you?" I asked.

"Cut the crap! I know you told Axel to do your dirty work! You're sick! If you wanted to get people to stop believing the rumors, _you _should have gone around calling all those girls and going from dorm to dorm apologizing and explaining! Don't make Axel do it for you! You may have convinced him that you aren't a slut! But you won't fool me! I was there when you were talking to Demyx about that man-whore Marluxia and what you did with him! You're a fucking slut and that won't change!" The girl gritted out angrily.

I gave her an even more confused look. "What are you talking about?" I snapped.

"You made Axel go from dorm to dorm and explain the rumors. And when the people weren't in the dorms he would call them on the phone to explain! I was walking down the hallway and I saw him get slapped by a couple of girls who were angry at you! It's _you _who should have gotten smacked not him! I hate you and the way you trick Axel! He should love someone like me who will always be faithful to him!" She hissed and shoved me a little.

Now, I was raised never to put my hands on girls in a hurtful manner so I let her push me, but I spoke out to her. "I didn't even know he was doing that! And it makes me feel very honored that he would suffer the way he did for me, but this is not my fault! I didn't cheat on Axel with Marluxia. I made out with Marley _before _Axel and I got together! _You _jumped to conclusions after you heard me talking to Demyx and then you spread that false rumor around! So in actuality, _you're _the one who got him hurt! Not me!" I yelled angrily. I was so tired of this!

"How dare you say that to me!" Maleficent bellowed and shoved me again and I stepped back to regain my balance…

Only there was no floor for me to step on… I felt panic surge through me as I fell backwards. Out of reflex I turned mid-fall to catch myself, and another wave of fear flew through me as I saw myself fall downward towards the cold, hard, unforgiving stairwell.

I closed my eyes and shot my arms out to break my fall. I suddenly felt a sharp pain fly up my arm as I began to tumble down. I screamed when I felt my head smack against the steps. My body flew over me as I somersaulted forward and down the stairs. I can only say I was lucky there was a wall I smacked into instead of more stairs to fall down from.

I could feel blood running from a cut on my forehead so I moved to sit up. I hissed as I pain shot up one of my arms… however… I couldn't feel my other arm.

I frowned and lifted my arms up for me too see. I let out scream at my swollen wrist.

It was then that adrenaline faded and immense pain shot through that arm I cried and screamed as I realized there was numbness in my hand.

I looked up the stairwell to see Maleficent staring down at me in shock. Suddenly people came running from the dorms at the commotion.

I continued to scream at the pain flowing through me, I could feel the blood running down my face but I really couldn't think of anything to do but just sit there. My brain refused to focus on anything except my wrist and after a minute of staring at it in shock.

My stomach lurched and I vomited to the left of me. I retched again before I felt a hand on my back.

I looked up to see Riku, with a panicked look on his face. He looked at something behind me and yelled.

"Sora! Call an ambulance right now!" He yelled.

It didn't register what was happening. I wailed and screamed at the pain that kept bouncing back and forth from my feet to my head.

"Roxas… Roxas… calm down… you have to calm down." Riku's words went through one ear but out the other.

Things started spinning for a second and I noticed someone running down the stairs to get to me.

It was Axel. The name clicked in my brain and I screamed. "AXEL!"

"I'm here baby! I'm here, and the ambulance is on its way. Who did this to you?" Axel asked and I tried to think… but only one thought hit me.

The thought sent the coldest, most painful chill through my entire body.

What about my piano playing? What if my wrist was injured badly! I couldn't play without functioning wrists! I started screaming again and Axel's face looked pained and frightened.

"Roxas, you need to calm down!" Riku and Axel said together and I shook my head though it made me dizzy.

"I'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO PLAY THE PIANO AGAIN! OH GOD! OH GOD! MY PIANO! AXEL, MY PIANO!" I yelled hysterically and Riku's face sank considerably.

Axel's face hardened. "You don't know that Roxas!" Axel grabbed my face gently and I was forced to look in his eyes. "If you want to continue playing the piano, you need to stop screaming and focus on getting to a hospital so that you can get everything healed. You understand?" Axel snapped firmly and he started taking deep breaths with me as Sora came up and pressed something to my forehead to stop the bleeding.

I another dizzy spell ran through me and Axel's intense green eyes were the last thing I saw.

A/N: HAHAHAHHA! I'M SO EVIL! Review for more!


	14. Chapter 14

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **I never owned anything except for the plot.

I'm sorry I left you guys hanging for so long… I had a lot of college stuff to attend to.

Chapter 14

"FUCK! I can't fucking do this!" I screamed after I slammed the door of the practice room with my good hand.

I hated my life right now.

I won't be able to play for three weeks, and I won't be back to full capacity until another three weeks have passed.

That means for six weeks, I am out of fucking commission! The doctor told me I had a _severe _sprain. He said I was _lucky _that I fell on my face as soon as I did. FUCK THAT!

I sank against the wall underneath the window so that no one would see me. I covered my face with my hands only to cringe in disgust when I felt the brace on my wrist. I couldn't do this… I _needed _the piano…

After I had heard the news, Mr. Fair and Mrs. Gainsborough were both unsure of how to proceed with me being so injured.

I thought for sure I was going to be expelled and then my life would have been over. But they quickly found an alternative for me.

Because I was a collaborative pianist, I would have to work with singers a lot. So for the duration of my injury, I was to replace all of the classes for my major with the ones of Axel's major…

Vocal Performance.

Apparently, Axel suggested that I follow him throughout the day. The professors thought the idea was _genius._ They told me that this experience would allow me to see inside the brain of a singer. Learn their tendencies and their psyche. And in the process receive the same musical enrichment that I would have if I had resumed the classes of my major.

I slammed my fist against the wall as a few tears escaped my eyes. I released a sigh and looked up at the ceiling in an attempt to calm myself.

The truth was…

I was afraid…

I was scared about taking these vocal music classes, I was scared about being in a new environment with people I didn't understand, I was scared about signing badly in front of other people… but most of all…

I was terrified about how my life might be without piano for six weeks, maybe even longer. I was _so _scared about whether or not I would really fully recover.

I just wasn't ready for this.

"I can't do this…" I repeated and let another tear fall.

Sora, Riku, and Axel were so worried for me… they kept asking me if I was going to be okay… I told them I was fine… I told them I couldn't wait to try something new… I smiled at them and told them that I would make the best of the new experience…

"I was fucking lying! I don't want this! I just want to play piano! I don't want to try anything new!" I cried into the soundproof room.

The only good thing that came out of this was the fact that that stupid bitch who pushed me down the stairs was expelled and with the influence of the school she is now unable to get into any other arts school anywhere.

If her punishment was anything less, I wouldn't be here crying in this practice room… I would be hunting that bitch down so that I could toss her dumb-ass down the stairs.

Stupid-ass-floppy-cunted-bitch! I would never stop hating her for the rest of my life.

I sighed a second time and tried to remove the tears from my face but to no avail. I couldn't seem to get a grip on myself. The past few days have been way to stressful for me. And I just couldn't take it anymore.

I immediately quieted my sniffling when the door opened. I remained in my position hoping that the person wouldn't notice me. I also hoped they wouldn't swing the door open any wider. The person would hit me with the door.

"He's not in here. Where could he be? …I'm worried about him." I stiffened when I realized it was Axel on the other side of the door. It was unfortunate that my stiffening caused me to bump my head against the wall slightly, making a noise.

I looked away but I knew Axel was probably looking around the door.

"Roxas! We were looking all over for you to see if you were really okay… I guess not, huh?" Axel said and kneeled in front of me with a small smile.

I looked at him for a second before looking at Sora and Riku behind him. They all looked so concerned.

I just shook my head as more tears fell. I hated feeling vulnerable and here I was…

"I-I c-can't t-take v-vocal music cl-classes! I-I-I… I'M A PIANIST! I WANT TO PLAY THE PIANO!" I cried not realizing how distraught I was over the whole incident.

Riku and Sora kneeled on either side of me and rubbed my back as I cried. Axel took my face and wiped away my tears.

"I'm sorry…" Axel said, his voice both guilty and sincere. I looked at him questioningly with teary eyes.

"It was selfish of me to suggest that you take vocal performance classes… I just… I didn't want you to get kicked out of school and I didn't want you taken from me. Though I did have your best interest at heart when I asked about it… I was also kind of selfishly hoping that they would allow it so I could always have you with me. I didn't think it would upset you so much… and for that I am sincerely sorry." Axel said and I launched myself at him.

He wrapped his arms around me and let me cry on his shoulder. After a few minutes I pulled away from him. Axel took my arm and placed a kiss on my brace. "It's not over till the fat lady sings, Rox, and lucky for you, none of the mezzos or sopranos here are fat." He said with a smile and I let out a soggy giggle.

"Thanks guys…" I said looking at the three greatest people around. "I wouldn't be able to function here without you guys…" I said.

"We love you Roxas… what kind of parents would we be if we didn't look out for our kid?" Sora said with a smile and planted a kiss on my damp cheek.

"To be honest Roxas… I'm really curious about how this will all work out. This has never happened before at the conservatory… it will be a new experience for everyone…" Riku said and rubbed my shoulder for a second before smiling at me.

I nodded. "I don't know about you guys… but I'm terrified… I just… I can't sing! If I could sing, I would be a singer!" I said and Axel smiled.

"Don't worry about that, Roxas… if anyone gives you any sort of trouble… they'll have to deal with me… and they don't want that…" Axel said with an evil looking glint in his eyes.

I sighed and shook my head. "I guess I'll never know until I try…" I said and Axel laughed.

"YES!" He said and pulled me to a standing position. "Let's go for walk…" Axel said and I nodded.

"We'll see you around Roxas… and Axel…" Riku looked to his best friend. "The next time we have dinner… we want you there too…" he finished and Sora nodded with a smile.

Axel beamed at them and I knew that he was ecstatic for earning back the trust of his best friends. He took my uninjured hand gently and pulled me down the hall. We slowly walked back to the dorms and up the elevator to Axel's floor.

I just followed him. I didn't really have anything to do and I didn't mind just being with Axel.

When he closed the door to his room he turned to me and pulled me into a tender embrace. I was puzzled by the affection but I returned it.

"You really scared me… I… for a second I wasn't sure if you were going to be okay…" He voice was a quiet whisper in my ear, but it held such raw relief that I shivered at the sound of it.

"I'll be okay if you're here… I'll always be okay if you're around…" I said softly and pressed my face into his chest.

Axel took my face in his hands and started planting soft kisses on my skin. "Mein Herz…" he whispered and planted another kiss. "Meine Seele…" another kiss. "Mein Leben…" he kissed the shell of my ear. "Meine Welt…"

I trembled beneath his attentions… I really had no idea what he was saying… he could me whispering curses in my ear and quite frankly; I'd _still _be turned on.

"Ich sehne mich nach dir…" His eyes were smoldering and I couldn't help but find everything about him at that moment to be so sexy…

"I don't know what your saying but feel free to proceed with whatever you are planning…" I said softly and Axel pulled me into a hungry kiss.

I wrapped my arms around him, careful not to hurt my wrist. Axel lifted me off the floor and I wrapped my legs around him as he carried me to what I hoped was a bed.

I smiled into our kiss when I realized I didn't flinch or squirm at his touch… after all of that other drama, our fight before we got together seemed like old news.

I felt myself be placed on something soft and I moved my kisses to Axel's neck as his hands slid up my shirt. His hands were so warm and smooth; I couldn't help but arch my back a little at the feeling of his hands on me.

Axel let out a quiet moan as my teeth grazed over a sensitive area on his neck. He gently pulled my shirt off and I shivered with pleasure when his lips began to ghost over the new bruises I received from falling down the stairs.

"Axel… je veux… … more…" I panted. I couldn't seem to form a coherent thought in one language.

Axel smirked at me before letting his kisses travel to the hard, pink buds on my chest. He circled his tongue around one and I whined. He relented and I reveled in the feeling of his mouth on my sensitive skin.

"Ahah! Là-bas! There!" I cried in pleasure and Axel hummed against the bud. I arched my back for a second time and I moaned when our groins pressed against each other.

Axel's hand went behind me to grab the small of my back. He continued to hold me up to him as we grinded against one another.

"Axel!" I yelped at a sudden flash of bliss.

"Ja, Roxas… so gut…" Axel panted in my ear as we writhed together.

I jumped when I heard the door burst open. "HAH! Found you two! Axel we may have accepted you… but as parents… well, you need to get off of my son…" Riku said and Sora continued. "Roxas is an injured man, and he's emotionally vulnerable! You shouldn't take advantage!"

I wanted… to kill them.

LET ME GET MY ROCKS OFF DAMNIT!

"GET OUT! Va-t'en! Vite! Je suis… Oh God, I'm so fucking close!" I moaned and I felt Axel's head land on my shoulder. I could feel his shoulders shake with laughter.

He was laughing so hard, no noise actually escaped from his mouth. He gasped. "OH GOD! This is so ridiculous!" He cried before he continued his laughter.

I looked to the door and noticed that Riku and Sora were laughing silently as well.

Were they laughing at me?

"AH! Axel has pissed you off many a time… but I had never seen you so blazingly frustrated as you just were! HAHAH! AHHHHAHAHAHAH!" Sora cried through gasps of breath.

"You looked like you were going to get up and rip our throats before gouging our eyes out! You looked mad as hell!" Riku laughed.

Needless to say… I never got off.

With a huff I kicked Axel off the bed and wrapped myself in his bed covers. "Fuck you all…" I said with a hurt voice. They were making fun of me… a cripple.

"Awe come on, Roxy… we weren't making fun of you… we just thought the situation was funny." Axel said and I felt him crawl onto the bed.

"We're sorry, Roxas! We were just doing our duties as parents." Sora said.

"You just think it's okay to laugh at me because I'm an invalid!" I cried and I curled into myself underneath the comforter. To be honest… it smelled like Axel and I couldn't help getting lost in it.

"That's not true, Roxas." Axel said and I kicked in his general area so that he would know I didn't want him near me.

He grabbed my leg and crooned. "Mein Liebling…"

I tried to kick him again. "That's not going to work anymore Axel! You ruined it!" I yelped and struggled to free my leg.

Suddenly, I felt three bodies on the bed hugging my sheet-covered leg. "Ich liebe dich." Axel said the same time Sora and Riku said. "Ai shiteru."

"Get off me…" I mumbled and they let go.

I extracted myself from the covers and glared at Sora and Riku. "I really wanted to get off and now I can't… thanks…"

Riku and Sora planted a kiss on either side of my cheek.

"We can always try later… maybe somewhere more exciting… like-"

"Stop! The answer is no…" I said and did a three-legged crawl over to Axel. "I want to sleep now." I said and snuggled into Axel's side.

"Sounds good to me." He said and resituated us so that I was lying in his arms. Riku and Sora planted kisses on our heads and sighed. "I guess that means you're our son-in-law…" Riku said to Axel and he nodded.

"Is it weird that the son-in-law is older than the mother?" Sora asked.

We all looked at each other… "Nah…" we chimed together before Sora and Riku let us drift off to sleep.

A/N: Some lemony juicy-ness for you guys! Review please! And sorry about my shitty languages… I only had some schooling in French… German I learned a bit from singing and Japanese, from anime… (nerd much?)


	15. Chapter 15

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **I don't own kids…

So… I'm alive… and now it's summertime! Enjoy!

Chapter 15

I wanted to kill Axel... the stupid bastard woke me up at six in the morning to tell me how excited he was about me joining the vocal department... as if he had absolutely nothing to do with it.

And besides we went over this already, I was one hundred percent pianist… I have not a functioning musically talented vocal chord within me. Just because I was a musician did not, I repeat did NOT mean I could actually carry a tune successfully.

Though Axel has been really good about making me feel more comfortable about my wrist and changing departments for a while... I just can't help but have that nagging anxiety in the back of my mind telling me that everyone's gonna think I'm some kind of joke.

"Roxy I didn't just wake you up to tell you I was excited. I made you a singer's breakfast and afterwards..." he seemed to pause for dramatic effect, "You and I are going to do vocal warm ups together before class!" He said happily and I couldn't help but chuckle at the completely ridiculous look on his face.

"Do I have to get up now?" I asked with a groan.

"Yes! Come on! It'll be so much fun!" Axel said before pulling me out of the bed.

Getting ready didn't really take long. I wasn't really one if those people that were slow in the mornings but that didn't mean I wasn't tired. When I was done, Axel took me up to his room where Riku and Sora were drinking coffee.

"Tadaa!" Axel exclaimed before gesturing to my 'singer's breakfast.' It consisted of a cup of hot herbal tea with lemon and a bowl of fruit.

It was simple but he had set the coffee table with matching dishes and a fancy powder pink napkin. I appreciated the set up.

"Thanks for this Axel." I said and kissed his cheek before moving to sit on the couch. I grabbed the bowl of fruit and began to eat. Axel sat next to me and stole a strawberry.

"Hey!" I whined before Axel popped the bright red fruit into his mouth.

"You still want it?" Axel asked though I could barely understand him with a large chunk of strawberry in his mouth.

"You could have at least taken a grape... I wanted that strawberry..." I pouted.

Axel laughed, "well, don't mind if I do!" Axel said and took a grape from my bowl.

I growled at him and ate a piece if watermelon before kicking him in the shin. Axel yelped and swallowed the grape the wrong way. I smirked and let him choke for a second before giving him a large thump on the back that dislodged the grape.

Axel spat it out and gasped for air. "You really sat there and watched me choke for a second!" Axel exclaimed incredulously.

"You should know never to mess with a man's food this early in the morning." I said before returning to my breakfast.

When breakfast was over and I was warmed up (hopefully), it was time for classes. I could feel my heart starting to speed up in anxiety. This was it. The time had come.

"I'll walk you to your voice class. We have chorale and opera workshop together so I'll see you later." Axel said and kissed my head before taking my hand.

I couldn't help but feel as though he sensed my nerves. He was making sure to send me positive vibes.

I sent him one last miserable smile before entering the classroom. I sat in a desk and watched the singers around me.

They were extremely loud and I'm sure I heard a lit of them talking about others behind their backs.

I sighed... this was gonna be horrible.

"Don't like us already?" Came a voice from behind my desk.

I turned and gasped, for a second I thought I was looking at Axel... but it wasn't Axel, the person I was looking at had strikingly blue eyes instead of the stunning green I was used to.

"The name's Reno, I'm a baritone. And you are the newbie I assume?" He asked and I nodded.

"New to this department, yes…" I raised my injured hand. "Can't necessarily play piano with this... and I can't muss six weeks if schooling either... so here I am..." I explained.

"Bummer, dude. Well, I'm sure the instructors won't expect too much of you... just by looking we can tell that you ain't much of a singer." Reno said.

"I just want to get past these six weeks as quickly as possible." I mumbled before looking around.

A lot of the girls would send me a glance and then move to whisper to their peers. I sure hoped they weren't judging me already.

I wished Axel was here.

"So what's your name?" Reno asked.

"Roxas... I'm actually a collaborative pianist. I'd give nothing more to be at that piano to play with you... god knows I can't actually sing." I said.

Reno laughed. "This will be more entertaining than I thought then. I mean it's not everyday that you come to a conservatory and hear someone who sounds bad... that's like, contradictory." Reno said.

"Well at least you're honest. I have a feeling a lot of people in here are just whispering that to their friends..." I said.

"I guarantee that... I mean, that's what singers do a lot of the time. We're all sparkles at first impression but behind it all we really just like talking trash... don't get me wrong, we're not all bad... but every singer has his or her moments of complete bitchiness." Reno explained.

"Well that's good to know... I guess." I said.

The door to the classroom opened once more and a teacher strolled into the room. Her eyes scanned the room and landed on me. She smiled. "It seems we have a newcomer in our midst… why don't you stand up and explain your circumstances?" It was less of a question and more of a request so I stood.

I opened my mouth to speak when the teacher interrupted. "Move to the front of the room so everyone can see you… don't be modest… there is no modesty in the performing arts." The teacher said and I followed her instruction.

I sighed. "My name is Roxas Alford… I'm from France and I am a collaborative pianist… Recently, I was pushed down the stairs for no real reason at all and I severely sprained my wrist… I won't be back on track until six weeks so I needed another way to educate myself without actually playing the piano… someone suggested that I switch departments for the moment to try and discover what its like to be in the other position I guess… instead of being on the sidelines… they want me to learn the dynamics of being in the spotlight…" I reasoned.

A girl raised her hand and I sent her an odd look… what was so hard about that to understand?

"So, are you _really _Axel's boyfriend?" the girl asked and the other girls started a dull roar in curiosity.

I groaned. Is that really all they fucking cared about?

"You don't have to answer that. Vivian, certainly you have enough decency to respect other people's privacy, yes?" the teacher asked.

Vivian blushed and sent me a glare before mumbling. "Yes…"

I sighed a third time and moved to sit at my desk again when the teacher made a noise of protest. "I'm not finished with you yet. I have to know just what I'm working with. Have you warmed up at all?" she asked.

I nodded.

"Alright… are their any classical pieces that you know that you can sing?" the teacher asked.

I thought for a while and spoke. "Well… I know them from playing them… I haven't really studied them…" I said.

"Yes… just pick one." The teacher urged and I thought.

I asked, "Do you know Come Away, Death? By Roger Quilter?" I asked.

Her eyes widened. "Yes… let's see how you do." She said and turned to a shelf and pulled out an anthology of Quilter pieces. "You should turn to your audience and announce your piece." The instructor advised.

"I'm going to sing Come Away, Death by Roger Quilter…" I said clearly, but with fear lacing my voice.

"Now… I'm no collaborative pianist like yourself… so excuse me if I slip a little." The teacher said with a smile and I nodded.

"Thank you for playing Ms…" I trailed.

"Everyone calls me Phyllis." She said and I smiled. She took a small breath and played the notes on the piano that I loved hearing and producing with my hands.

"_Come away, come away, death, and in sad cypress let me be laid." _I sang trying my hardest not to frown at the sound of my pipes butchering the piece. I thought about the song… about the piano and how I felt when I played.

"_Fly away, fly away breath; I am slain by a fair cruel maid." _I was dying… and had no lover to really care. In fact, my uncaring lover was the cause of my lethal pain. I felt my heart clench at the thought and I continued to sing, following the same dynamics I would in the piano. I could feel the slight rise in passion and pain._ "My shroud of white, stuck all with yew, O, prepare it! My part of death, no one so true did share it."_

I calmed my thoughts of inevitable death and continued lightly. _"Not a flower, not a flower sweet on my black coffin let there be strewn." _I cringed and shuddered. _ "Not a friend, not a friend greet my poor corpse, where my bones shall be thrown." _I could feel myself get lost for a second in the pain and I grabbed the piano in bitter despair._  
>"A thousand, thousand sighs to save,"<em> I felt the song climax and I wept. _ "Lay me, O, where sad true lover never find my grave, to weep there!" _I sang feeling the loneliness of knowing that I wanted someone to bury me where no one could find me… no one to give me flowers or lament for my soul… no one to remember my existence…

When the piano faded I tried to shake off the sadness that I was trying to portray, but I couldn't. I sighed yet again and looked at the people around me.

Most people had smiles on their faces or blank looks.

"Awwwe! He sounds like a baby tenor!" One of the girls gushed and the silence was broken.

"I'm glad I have at least _something _to work with. Have a seat Roxas." Phyllis said and I nodded before sitting down.

"Honestly… how terrible was I?" I asked Reno, knowing he would tell the truth.

"Well… to be honest… your tone is not very good… your breath is way to high and so your shoulder's tense and so does your throat… which makes your voice sound tight… like its being squeezed out…" he said and I nodded with a frown.

Its not like I was expecting any better. Though it did kind of hurt to know that sometimes even when you try your best you can still suck.

"Wait… before you go getting depressed and shit, let me tell you the good things." Reno said and I looked at him disbelievingly.

"There weren't any…" I said.

"There were… you got up there and you really committed to the music and the text… there are _professionals _out there that _still_ can't do that… your eyes and body were so focused on feeling that I couldn't take my eyes off you. And I'm basically attention-deficit… so that's quite an accomplishment." He said and ruffled my hair. "Don't worry, kiddo… by the end of six weeks, you'll be much improved."

I swatted his hands away and smiled. "Thank you… not just for giving me advice… but for even approaching me… I was afraid I wasn't going to be able to make any friends." I said with a blush.

Reno smirked. "I figured you'd like a companion with some class."

I chuckled. "Yeah, that's always nice."

I watched in amazement as others got up to sing. There were so many different voices, some of them I would have loved to play with. Every once and a while Reno would tell me something in my ear. It was usually just information about the person I was listening to.

"The last soprano was Arietta Orontea… her family is from Italy but she's actually lived in America all her life. She is the most mature and better upcoming sopranos in our class. And just listen to her name… it's like she was bred to be an opera singer." Reno said and I nodded.

Arietta definitely had a fabulous voice… but it seemed as though her voice was ahead of her in time… it was like a wild horse that was yet to be tamed or something.

When class was over I stood and stretched. "Where are you headed?" I asked.

"Chorale… you?" he asked.

"Oh, me too! That's great because I don't know what classroom it's in…" I said.

"Follow me." He said before we moved out of the classroom and down the hall.

I was about to turn the corner when I heard my name. "Roxas! Roxas!" I turned to see Axel moving down the hall quickly to get to me.

"Is there something wrong?" I asked and yelped when he scooped me up and spun me around. "What are you doing!" I squawked.

"Roxas! In chorale we are doing a collaboration of Carl Orff's Carmina Burana with the Met and I auditioned for the baritone role." He said excitedly and I nodded, and then paused.

"How come I didn't know about this?" I asked.

"I didn't think there was even a possibility that I would get the role but I got it! They chose me to be the baritone soloist!" Axel exclaimed and I didn't yelp this time when he picked me up again to spin me around.

I beamed at him. I knew this was a really big deal and I was really happy for him. "Congratulations, Axel! I only wish you could have told me you were auditioning so that I could support you better." I said.

Axel put me down and pressed a kiss to my forehead. "You support me just by being here. But really Rox! There's a full orchestra and there are going to be dancers! DANCERS! If I could be any other artist besides a singer… it would be a dancer! They so amazing and I haven't even met them yet!" he babbled and I chuckled. It was the first time I had ever seen him so excited.

"Wow… a full orchestra… that's insane… sometimes I cant even get across the school's biggest hall with a piano." Reno said and Axel smiled.

"Enjoy these halls while they last Reno… it's so much work to get over the orchestra… that's why I love recitals in the small auditoriums. But don't worry… you'll get to orchestras eventually." Axel said and Reno smirked.

"I know I will."

I smiled at the two of them together. "Hey Reno, are you German too?" I asked.

"Ja…but I'm from Berlin… Axel and I actually go way back. We went to the same arts schools until he decided to graduate ten billion years early. Not cool, yo." Reno said and Axel laughed.

"It's not like they didn't offer you a chance to skip a grade or two." Axel said.

"Yeah, but I wanted a normal childhood." Reno said.

"Nothing about our childhoods was normal, dude." Axel said as we finally reached the classroom door.

It was time for Chorale.

A/N: I had one reviewer ask that I have dancers at the conservatory… sadly this conservatory is strictly musical performing arts and associating arts (i.e. conducting, composition, and collaborative studies) so I really couldn't insert dancers as part of the school but I decided I would incorporate them this way… I hope this is satisfactory. I think it's going to be great! (it's all planned in my head you see!)…REVIEW MY PRETTIES!


	16. Chapter 16

**Cantabile**

**Disclaimer: **I don't own the characters, or the music, or the translations of the texts of the music. I do, however, own the plot.

So yeah, it's been a little bit of a while, but that's because I was distracted by lots of things… anyway I hope you enjoy the new chapter.

Chapter 16

Carmina Burana was by far one of the coolest works I have ever come across. And what's funny is, everyone knows it! I can basically guarantee that anyone over the age of sixteen has heard at least the first movement of this work without realizing what it was.

It's basically a musical piece that portrays the mindset of a young adolescent boy moving into manhood. All the angst, the desire, the sin, the love, the deceit… it's all there! It's really amazing.

And Chorale isn't playing any games. Now, we all know I'm totally a beginner at singing, but the choir director is still making us all haul ass. We have to have the entire 25-movement piece learned and memorized in three weeks! THREE WEEKS!

It sometimes takes me three weeks to learn one Bach invention, just one! And that's on my primary instrument! Dr. Meg wants me to learn the entire ensemble, which probably has at least five times the amount of music, in the same time frame.

And Axel is no fucking help… even though he totally could be! He doesn't have to learn all the movements because he's a soloist and isn't even going to be on stage for half of them! He only has to learn the movements he's in!

But…

If I take a moment to be an understanding boyfriend… I get it… he's already nervous enough about singing on the Met stage again. He's nervous about keeping his reputation and pleasing the director and conductor. He's worried about being upstaged by the older, much more experienced Soprano and Tenor soloists. I know… he's got an even bigger plate in front of him than mine… so I don't complain to him… even though I kinda want to.

I sighed and shake away my negative thoughts. It's not like I didn't love learning the music… because I really do love this piece. You first fall in love with the first movement and then BOOM! You realize that between the first and last, there are golden treasures and hidden masterpieces that you never knew were there. It really _was _great. I had to admit.

I really couldn't wait to put this together with the full orchestra and get the choreography down. It would be so mind-blowing and big and fantastic.

With a smile I walk into my theory class. I was glad that I didn't have to switch classes because of the big department move. I laughed when Demyx told me Mr. S almost had a fit when they said I might change professors.

It's good to know that I'm appreciated.

"Hey, Dem." I said and sat down.

"Hey Rox, how have you been? You know, being a voice major and all now… it seems so strange… it's like you're a different species now." Demyx laughed.

"It's not really like that." I said with a frown. It's not like I've actually changed.

"I know… it must be hard, huh?" Demyx asked.

"Yeah… it is. But I'll manage. I have to say the vocal department has some pretty cool projects." I said, my frown flipping.

"Oh yeah! That um… what's it called… oh! Carmina Burana! I'm actually excited about that too! One of my college mentors is playing in the orchestra."

"Really? That's awesome! I'm really excited too! Learning the music is time consuming but I really like Carmina Burana a lot." I said.

"Oh! Don't say that in my classroom! Carmina Burana is a disaster… the audience literally sits and waits to get their faces blown off by the sheer volume of the chorus and orchestra! And don't even get me started on the composition! Carl Orff literally and deliberately slaughters the rules of counterpoint! There is absolutely no independence of line in any of the choral movements… and that's about 80 percent of the entire piece… It's a sin for someone to destroy hundreds of years of technical art form… it's just wrong." Mr. S complains as he sits at his desk.

I smiled. "I never realized you were so opinionated, Mr. S. You seem really passionate about the subject too." I said.

Mr. S looked at me, his eyes portraying no nonsense. "I'm a musical purist… so to speak. I wrote my dissertation on this kind of thing and during my early years of teaching wrote books about keeping counterpoint and early music in the curriculum of both music and non-music schools. Let's just say, I know that music has come a rather long way…" Mr. S said.

I chuckled. "C'mon Mr. S, just by looking at you I know you have a deep passion and love for music… there's got to be some things about Carmina Burana that you like." I said as more students filed into class.

Mr. S sighed. "I have a bit of a soft spot for the Tenor solo… It's morbid and full of suffering… It's not really text painting but the music does somehow mirror the angst of the text… and it really does allow the listener to depict that sort of fear and torment of being roasted alive. I'm curious to see what the choreographer will do with that sort of imagery." Mr. S said and I smiled.

"I wouldn't have guessed that you would like that sort of thing… I have to admit that I agree with you. I feel like a lot of the pieces don't really text paint but seem to give off some sort of essence of the text… its sets the tone and the mood and the audience can definitely feel it." I said thinking about it seriously.

"Your musical sensitivity astounds me, Roxas." Mr. S said.

"Thank you, sir." I nodded at the compliment and Demyx looked at me, his jaw slack.

"How is it that you can have an intelligent conversation with the scariest teacher in this school?" Demyx asked quietly.

I just shrugged and Mr. S began class.

-Cantabile-

My voice lessons, surprisingly, are a lot better than I thought they would be. I think it's because of the individual attention and because the teacher is there simply for your benefit… they aren't there to tell you what the problems are… they're there to tell you how to fix them… and that to me… is the greatest thing anyone could offer me right now.

I was assigned a little English piece called "The Cloths of Heaven." I loved it…

But what I loved more than anything was the accompaniment… I loved it so much. It was perfect… it accompanied the sung word so well but it also had a purpose of it's own. It was the soft treading of feet and the waving of the heavenly cloths in the winds and the… begging of delicate and sweet dreams…

I sighed and moved to my dorm. Singing the song made me so happy, but completely miserable at the same time. I really just wanted to take a nap before going to lunch.

After lunch I would be doing nothing but practice and classes.

I walked down the hall and frowned when I noticed Axel sitting against my dorm door.

"Axel? What are you doing out here? Is Sora not in?" I asked wondering why he would wait outside if Sora could let him in.

"No… he's not…" Axel said softly and my frown deepened.

"Are you okay, Ax?" I asked and moved over to him. I waited for him to stand but he just sat there on the floor.

He shook his head and I knelt down next to him. "What's wrong?" I had never seen him like this before. He looked so beaten… I was so used to the over-confidence that seeing him so closed down scared me a little.

"M-my parents…" he stuttered and I grabbed his arm and pulled him up.

"Come on, you can tell me when we get in the dorm… I don't really think the hallway is an appropriate place for this conversation." I said and Axel just stood quietly looking at the floor.

I opened my dorm room and pulled him into my bedroom. Though it was small it would give us more privacy. I was so confused by the way he was acting right now, I was almost tempted to shake him and yell 'Hey! Axel! Are you in there?' but I don't think that would really help the situation.

He and I sat on the bed and I took one of his hands. "Axel… what about your parents?" I asked hoping everything was okay.

"They don't want me to do the Carmina Burana role… they've always wanted me to be a famous tenor… and they don't think I can handle such a big baritone role… but my lower register is so much easier right now… and the conductor was so pleased by my interpretation… I was so happy when he said I had earned the part… b-but my p-parents d-don't think it's right… Th-they…" Axel paused and I squeezed his hand to comfort him.

"What did they do, Axel?" I asked, really dreading the answer.

"Th-they tried t-to convince the director and the conductor to give the role to someone else, they t-tried to make me an understudy instead… they k-kept telling Mr. Carl, the conductor, that my timbre was too light and that I wouldn't be able to sing over the chorus and the orchestra… Th-they basically t-tried to sabotage me! M-my own parents! They're trying to ruin my career as a baritone all be-because…" he paused again to swallow the lump in his throat.

"Because th-they fucking want me t-to a better tenor than Pavarotti, than any tenor! _I_ just want to sing! I don't care what type, I don't care what range or tessitura! I j-just w-want t-to sing! A-and I worked on th-this role on my o-own! My parents had no influence in the decision-making when I auditioned. I w-won this r-role on m-my talent and m-my hard work… all b-by myself… I was s-so happy! And my fucking parents are trying to fucking destroy it because it's not what _they _planned!" Axel cried before bursting into tears.

I couldn't believe it… his parents were trying to tear down their own son's dream… what kind of parents do that?

"Who are your parents to be able to do such a thing?" I asked.

"My mother's the head of the Board for the Metropolitan Opera Company and my dad is a world famous music director and has worked for almost every main opera house in the world. Even La Scala!" Axel sobbed.

Well… DAMN!

But still, that's no excuse to do something like that to your own kid. That's just so wrong.

I pulled Axel into an embrace as he cried. I had never seen Axel really cry… ever. I was a little unsure of how to handle it. "Axel… did Mr. Carl place you as the understudy?" I asked, praying that he didn't.

"N-no, Mr. Carl said that he trusts his judgment in choosing me… but I've never felt so betrayed by my own parents. Even when they wouldn't let me sing a Vaughan Williams concert that I spent months organizing and preparing for… they said his music was Baritone rep that I had no business singing… I figured they just meant they were concerned about my vocal health… but no! They didn't like it because they want me singing all of these big tenor pieces by Handel and Mozart and Rossini and all those other Bel Canto composers… I hate that they make me want to resent them! I hate that they take away my freedom to express myself… I j-just want to sing…" he rambled as tears fell down his face.

"Axel…" I trailed off… I couldn't stand seeing him this way. Because I understood him so well… right now, with this brace on my wrist, I've never felt so trapped before in my life. I feel as though I can't fly away like I used to when I play on the piano.

But for Axel… the very people who love him and are supposed to support him are locking him away… which only makes it hurt more.

I took his face in my hands and he looked at me with watery emeralds. I wiped his tears and smiled. "You know what this means, mon alouette?" I asked.

"Wh-what?" he clasped my hands so desperately for the answer.

"You're going to prove them wrong… because you _are_ what Carmina needs, I know it." I said. "Ne pleure pas, ma voix." I said and kissed his lips gently.

When we pulled apart, Axel smiled at me through his tears. "Thank you, Roxas… I know things have been a little crazy with Carmina and all… but I'm happy things seemed to be going okay for you." He said quietly, his voice quivering a little.

I laid down on my bed and patted the little space next to me. Axel gave me a watery smiled and settled down next to me. "You wanna hear the new piece I just learned?" I asked.

Axel nestled his face in my chest and smiled wider. "You're going to sing to me?" he asked looking very hopeful.

I nodded. "I figured you would appreciate it even though I'm not the best singer in the world…" I trailed off, scratching my head sheepishly.

"Please… sing für mich, bitte…" he mumbled into my shirt.

I took a deep breath and began, thinking the beautiful accompaniment in my head and in my heart, feeling it trickling through me like the dew on the grass.

"_Had I the heavens' embroidered cloths enwrought with golden and silver light. the blue and the dim and the dark cloths of night and light and the half-light…" _I sang and looked at the ceiling, imagining billowing clouds and the sound of light summer rain, with the sun still shining brightly upon the trees and the flowers.

"_I would spread the cloths under your feet…"_ I sang and looked down at Axel, who was relaxing with his head on my chest, his eyes closed completely in peace.

"_But I, being poor, have only my dreams…"_ I let out a small laugh at those words… that was so true for so many of us… Axel released a breath and snuggled closer.

"_I have spread my dreams under your feet. Tread softly…"_ I sang. _"Tread softly…"_ I repeated tenderly, running a hand through Axel hair_. "…because you tread on my dreams…" _I sang… I wasn't sad, nor was I really all that happy… just encouraging and hopeful because I knew the one I loved would never crush something so honest… not after I so quickly hand over everything without doubt.

I smiled at Axel's now sleeping form, a smile gently laid across his peaceful features. "We can do this… Axel… we can make it if we try… " I said softly before drifting off.

A/N: I really like this chapter… I'm really happy with how it turned out. Now if you guys want to listen to the piece Roxas sings… search "The Cloths of Heaven Ian Bostridge" on youtube. Ian's voice is the most beautiful thing I have ever heard. His musical sensitivity and interpretation is partly what inspired me to write this entire story… almost every song in this story is sung by him and I listened to him as I wrote. I love the guy dearly and I don't even really know him… but he's someone I look up to as a performer and I only wish I could talk to him for five minutes just so I could learn from him, anything from him… but enough of that!

So, I already told the readers of my new story Hello, Doctor that I was trying for a story with 1000 reviews. I'm betting on this one or Hello, Doctor so please, review. It would make so happy to hear your thoughts and your encouragements. Press the blue/purple button below!


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